


Adopted

by Valaena_the_Historyteller1



Series: New Us [2]
Category: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Adopted Children, F/M, Gay Parents, Gen, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Same-Sex Marriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:46:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 103,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25204933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Valaena_the_Historyteller1/pseuds/Valaena_the_Historyteller1
Summary: After reuniting in the beach and some marriage bliss in Formenos, Fingon starts to believe their relationship should take another step. Meaning parenthood. Too bad there isn´t any unwanted elfling in Valinor they could adopt.On another part, Maeglin, now rehoused, have been having problems to keep the new life that was given to him. Abandoned by his parents and ostracised by society and family, he accepted a deal with Námo that will forever change his existence and send the elves in a very ardent debate about nature vs nurture.
Relationships: Caranthir | Morifinwë/Haleth of the Haladin, Celebrían/Elrond Peredhel, Elrond Peredhel & Maedhros | Maitimo, Ereinion Gil-galad & Fingon | Findekáno, Fingon | Findekáno/Maedhros | Maitimo, Fëanor | Curufinwë/Nerdanel, Maedhros | Maitimo & Nerdanel
Series: New Us [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824457
Comments: 85
Kudos: 221





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!! Hope you are enjoying the fanfics I made before. Anyway, this is something I came up with while unable to sleep late in the night. Hope you enjoy it!!

“What are you thinking?” asked Maedhros, as he stretched in bed. In nights like this, when he laid sated and deliciously sore by his husband´s side, naked as the day he was born, he could almost forget that no one behind the high Walls of the reconstructed Formenos wanted them on this world. And falling asleep together after such a delightful night… it was so easy and great, like it hasn´t been for a long time. But for some reason, it was different tonight. Finno was wide awake despite of the hour.

“How would you feel about having a child?” Fingon asked, turning towards him. the redhead gave him a confused look and was about to remind him of some facts when the other started talking again. “I… I know we can´t have a child of our own, I´m not an idiot, but… I think we can adopt one, like you did with Elrond and Elros.”

“You want to steal a child?” asked the redhead, lifting an eyebrow. 

“NO! I was meaning an orphan!! We can adopt an orphan and give him or her a home!!” the raven lifted himself on his shoulders. “Don´t you want something like that? To raise a child with me?”

“Of course I want, it´s just that… we are a same sex couple in a very narrow minded society. In Formenos we might be accepted, mainly because of my position and my father being the lord of the place, but… out there… you have seen what it´s like.” Findékanno shuddered, remembering the ostracism that some people showed him. “Besides, there are no orphans in Valinor.”

“No?”

“Aye” the Feanorian scratched his head. “That´s the whole meaning of rebirth and living in the perfect lands of the Valar, no? No sickness, war, death… nothing that could tear a family apart like during the First Age.”

“I… hasn´t thought of that” the Nolofinwion frowned. “I was hoping that we would be allowed to raise a baby. It´s just that… I lost the chance to raise Ereinion because of the war and Elrond talked so much about your great parenting skills that…”

“Hey, cheer up” Maedhros stopped, not wanting his husband to cry. He embraced him, cuddling him to his chest. 

“We might not be able to raise a kid together, but we will still have each other” they kissed. “And, just in case, I would have loved to raise a child with you. You would make an extraordinary father.”

“Ereinion might have another opinion”

“Gil-Galad can suck it…”

“No, leave him. It´s just like with Elrond, you and Makalaurë; Círdan is the best to him. The one who raised him while I only succeeded in getting myself stupidly killed before he was old enough to completely remember me” he shook his head. “I really should have waited in that damn battle.”

“Yes, you should have” Maitimo said, patting him on the shoulder as he released the other. “It would have done lots of good to me.”

“Would it have prevented the kinslayings?”

“Perhaps, you have ways to keep me distracted” he yawned. “Why are you bringing this up now? I mean… we have been together again for four years and you choose to bring it up now of all times…”

“Yes, I know I probably am rushing things” said Fingon, misunderstanding it completely. Maitimo raised an eyebrow. He knew married elder couples started to think about having children after the tenth year of marriage and kept age difference of at least fifty years between the children, but he was not conventional in any of the ways possible. He meant… he was a Feanorian!! Fëanor and Nerdanel conceived him within the first year of their marriage and Makalaurë was only twenty years younger than him!! Tyelkormo thirty!! He was used to the unconventionality. “But I really want to have something like that… and to share it with the one I love the most.”

“Finno…” oh, those puppy eyes of Doom. They could convince him of anything!! They were the same ones that convinced him to let the elf cut his hand rather than kill him and to have very loud sex when he was still fresh from captivity and within hearing distance of Thorondor. “Alright, I will start looking around for unwanted elflings… if that even exists in Aman.”

“Ahhh, don´t. I won´t take an infant away from his parents just to sate that idiotic need. Better forget it” he turned around in the bed, giving Maehdros his back. “Goodnight”

“Goodnight” the redhead said, wondering what he had done wrong. By his side, Findékano hid his tears. His husband had done nothing wrong, really, it was him. He shouldn´t have voiced those thoughts, what was he thinking? There was no way anyone would want to throw away an elfling, their own child. It was just… what kind of parent would do that?

-In another place-

“Get him!!” Maeglin hear and started running as fast as his injured legs could carry him. He was exhausted from his escape, dehydrated and hungry because of captivity, beaten… and more depressed than ever before in his life, but he kept running. He had to. Unless he wanted to be sent back to Mandos and probably thrown to the Void because there was no way he was going to get out again. Not with those animals waiting for him.  
The fleeing elf finally found a decent hidden place, a bridge over a river that had a dark place under it which could conceal him from his captors, so he quickly ran and duked there, desperately crawling closer to the darkness. Once there, he hugged his knees, waiting for his persecutors to find him. The fear that crawled into his body… he didn´t noticed he was trembling so hard until he heard the voice of one.

“Have you find him?” asked a nér to his friend. Lómion immediately brought a hand to his mouth, covering it entirely before a sound worth of a trapped little animal could exit it. It was the same nér that locked him in that dirty basement, one of Rog´s men from Gondolin.

“No, he was fast, the little shit” his friend answered. He was also a Hammer, which would explain why they were so angry at him. they presumably perished in the battle against Morgoth and his forces, something that was his fault. 

“And sneaky like a rat”

“How can he be? He is an injured elf, for the Valar´s sake!!” a third voice joined. He didn´t recognize this one from Gondolin, but if he was part of the gang that cornered him, he should be from there. Maybe one of Duilin or Galdor´s people. “No, he must be around here, hiding. There is no way he could move so fast after what Hwestion did to his leg.”

“I don´t know, they say fleeing for their lives armours rats with more speed than you can imagine.”

“Stop insulting rats, they are honourable animals compared with that filth” the three laughed. “Anyway, what Bastedir said is true, we should be searching somewhere in the woods. It´s more probable that he made a rush for his natural environment in such a dire situation. Prey usually do that.”

“To hunt then” the voices suddenly banished, but Maeglin didn´t relax. He kept his hand firmly on his mouth and the other around his knee until he could not hear anything but silence for an hour. After then… after then he just removed the former, as the sobs that were tearing up his chest have gone too strong to contain them anymore. He sat there, crying under bridge, until he finally calmed down enough to fish the knife he had used to escape from his pocket and held it to his neck. Way to die for a Noldor prince, crying under a bridge, but… but he couldn´t take it anymore. Was he a prince anymore? Someone´s son? Someone´s family?

Maybe he should begin with the start. After spending who knows how many thousands of years in Mandos, he was made to leave because he wasn´t healing. And it didn´t refer to his unrequired feelings for Idril, but… whatever Morgoth did to him. Other things too. The black haired young elf had, of course, run for his mother. She was the one that took him to Gondolin to protect him from his father, even if she did it reluctantly, and will be by his side. Or that´s what he thought. When he turned up on Fingolfin´s doorstep, asking to see his daughter, the first thing Aredhel did was disown him. He cried for her and asked her to forgive him for what he did to Gondolin, made excuses and promise he wasn´t who he was before. But there was no use. She continued to ignore him until Turgon grabbed him by the neck and dragged him outside, throwing him on the streets. Maeglin hugged himself at the rejection and stayed around in hopes of talking to her, to make her forgive him for the White City… soon he found out that his betrayal had nothing to do with her disowning. Something perturbing too, as he also saw his amil, the great noldorin princess, in bed with many nér. Something she enjoyed and which she would lose if her son made an appearance. Maeglin left after that, disturbed. He knew she was wild, but…

Anyway, after receiving nothing but the cold shoulder from his mother and her family, he tried to find his father. Eöl would probably want to humiliate and physically abuse him, but he would take him in. He was his only son, after all. His dreams came crashing down when the damn bastard also disowned him. He already had a second wife, an Avari this time, and two other children. He didn´t need the failed child he had with the golodh harlot. And Maeglin himself had disowned him once, so he didn´t feel any familial obligation to him anymore.  
That was how Maeglin found himself alone in the world, trying to find a way or reach someone. Nothing. No one tried to understand, everybody knew him by his most infamous deed and just left him on the streets, where he tried to contain his tears. Abandoned by the world, the young nér walked Tirion trying to find something to eat when the gondolidrim got the message that it was hunting season for the Traitor. Soon, he found himself escaping from everything that moved, feeling the same dread that in Angband. But now there was no way to run, no safety to escape to. He was completely alone.

“You are ours now, cudunya” the mockery of his title was said when that particular group finally got their hands on him. They dragged him, kicking and screaming, to the smith´s store and locked him in the basement, chained and in the darkness. Memories he thought he had left behind in Mandos started to return as he was tortured in that place. With hammers, anvils… every pain they could inflict, they did. And laughed all the way, as his tears felt to the ground. Sometimes they even invite people to the fun… Maeglin despised that more than anything. He had already given up when one of his captors left the door opened enough time for him to attempt a escape, snatching a knife from the backstore to defend himself. 

Now the former prince was going to use it. To end his life. Way to go for someone that used to have everything in life. Well, not everything. He lacked love.

It was true, he didn´t felt loved.

His mind fluttered back to his lonely childhood in Nan Elmoth. The dark home of his father in that dark forest he was born into… and his parents. Aredhel was half a prisoner in that place, but that didn´t mean she would take care of her son. Ever the intrepid hunter, as soon as Lómion can take a minimal care of himself she left him at home to go ridding or hunt all day long, making the boy feel unwanted. And it wasn´t her fault, really, she was the closest thing he had to a protector when his father was mad, but she never wanted to be a mother and was more interested in other things. Eöl was more worried about his smithing than his family, as long as his wife didn´t escape, and didn´t pay attention to his child until he was ready to start his training. Even then, he was more an abuser than a father to him, so he didn´t connect much with him. In fact, it was one of the reasons he escaped to Gondolin with his Ammë. Turgon… for Turgon he was a duty and he knew it. The king was distant and a little cold with him, despite giving him so much. He never embraced him, keeping the formality between them and cringing every time he look at his eyes. Idril… Idril simply hated him. Or she didn´t in Gondolin, where she was wary of him, but now she did. 

He had no one.

No one.

No one.

With that in mind, Lómion sliced his own throat, sending himself back to Mandos as the second elf to ever commit suicide. Námo personally received him in his Halls, his presence scaring him for a bit. What was going to happen to him for killing himself? And his many faults? The Fall of Gondolin? He wasn´t forgiven by elves, why should he be by the Valar.

“You killed yourself” the Doomsman said. Maeglin only nodded, hoping the desperation didn´t show so blatantly in him. It didn´t work, because the next words that exited the Vala´s mouth was calming. “Be reassured, Maeglin Lómion Eölion, that I´m not going to punish you for your last action. I have learned from Maedhros Feanorion that desperation has some effects in you, Children of Illúvatar, that might guide you to that.”

“So… I only have to stand an eternal stay here?”

“That´s not an option” Námo continued. “This Halls are for healing, not to hide. And they are not meant to house one forever” the Ainu sighed. “But in your case, I can see why you would want that. Your first and second life shows that you lacked a very important thing and would be hunted if returned.”

“Then…” something came up in his mind. “Why did you returned me in the first place? You knew what was going to happen.”

“I ignored it” Mandos said, mist rolling around him. “You weren’t healing here, so I thought sending you to your family will help your recovery. I sincerely hoped that Princess Irissë would put her selfishness and personal desires away for her only son, that your family helped you, but they have proven me wrong” he frowned. “They aren´t to be trusted with you.”  
“Turgon must have told them all the things I did”

“Indeed he did, but that´s not entirely the reason they disowned you and you are aware of that” Maeglin lowered his gaze, remembering his mother´s liaisons and his father´s new family. “So, I would like to propose you a deal. A new life for a new beginning” the elf didn´t understand. “I will turn you into a complete tabula rasa, without a memory, as a newborn, and give you away to a family of my choosing.”

“How that will make me heal?” asked the former prince, but he could already see that. As a baby, he won´t have a memory of Angband, Gondolin, Idril… anything. That was good, but… Did he really deserve this? No, not all. He didn´t deserve a fresh start after all the suffering he caused. “I… I don´t know. How could I know that they won´t throw me away?”

“You don´t, you will have to trust them, like any other newborn his parents. And you will also have to trust me” Námo announced. “I don´t know if that can be called healing, but you will be able to have the family you always wanted. That will make your battered soul a lot of good, perhaps much more than the stay in my Halls did” the Vala extended his hand. “What do you say, Maeglin Lómion, abandoned child? Will you accept my offer?”

“Do I have another choice?” they stared into each other. The Ainu obviously was going to say that he indeed has other options, but to try again and again to fit into the elvish society with his reputation only to be killed in a terrific way didn´t sound too good for him. “I accept your deal, give me the forgetting potion.”

“Irmo will be here in a few seconds to take away your memories” Maeglin nodded, lowering his gaze. He mentally listed his most precious memories, reliving them one last time before they were wiped away. Memories like his mother taking him on a hunting when he wasn´t still old enough to fare for himself, the first knife he forged, the few times Turgon actually made a hole in his agenda to spend time with him, Idril taking a stroll through the plaza… Idril. He only hoped that this rebirth cured his infatuation with her. 

“Brother” the Vala of Lorien appeared in that moment, standing before his brother´s throne with a serious expression. 

“You know why I asked you for a favour” he motioned the other towards Maeglin. “This is the one I told you about.”

“Then let´s begin” Irmo lifted his hands. “Close your eyes, it will be better”  
The elf did as he was told, waiting for the moment of the final death of the Traitor of Gondolin. Soon a darkness overtook him as Lorien worked his magic, erasing everything that once made him be him. Once the process was over, Námo rehoused him as an infant, who cried at the feeling of the new world around him. The new elfling was made to sleep and put in a basket by the Doomsman.

“Thank you for your assistance, brother” the Vala said before leaving his Halls with the elfling in his hands. “I would never have found a solution for this problem if not for you.”

“It was a pleasure to assist you in such a complicated situation” Námo nodded once more before he flew off to take Maeglin to his new parents. And, coincidentally, he knew of a couple who would love to raise the little one as theirs.

-In Formenos-

Finno and Maedhros were spending a nice afternoon alone in their house when the Doomsman made an appearance in their living room. First they panicked, as they believed he was there to take Maitimo and his family back to the Halls until the Second Music, but after the Vala assured them that his business here were very different from that, they calmed down. Fingon invited the Ainu to sit, something this one rejected. 

“I brought you a gift” he said, handing them over the basket. Nelyo opened it fearfully, wondering what kind of gift the incarnation of Death could bring, only to be confronted by an elfling. A newborn one, judging for it´s tiny form. Finno looked at the baby with wonder, trying to think of a reason to why it was brought to them. “Your nephew, Maeglin Lómion.”

“Irissë´s son?” Findékano asked, recognizing the name from one of the history books from Middle Earth some of Ereinion´s followers brought from Lindon. “I don´t understand, shouldn´t he be a fully grown nér?”

“Yes, but there were some complications in his rehousing and adaptation to the life in Tirion” Námo said, proceeding to explain them the circumstances of Lómion´s second death. Maedhros had the babe in his arms all the time, clutching him closer to his chest. The things this elfling had gone through… he couldn´t help but feel protective over it after hearing the explanation. 

“I don´t know, I still think you should bring him to Irissë or Turukáno…”

“Haven´t you heard? They abandoned him, all of them” Maedhros said, earning a nod from the Vala. It broke Finno´s heart, thinking that his family could be so heartless to abandon one of their own, but… he could see that. His wild sister ditching responsibilities, Turukáno keeping a grudge, Arko following his siblings, Fingolfin carrying more for what the people would think… it was to be expected. “We should keep him.”

“I know I said we should adopt a kid, but this is unexpected…”

“So what? It happened” Maitimo answered, feeling unable to abandon the little one to his luck like the Fingolfinians did. “You are not going to leave your nephew all alone, no?” Fingon frantically moved his head, how could he even think that of him? “That´s what I thought” the redhead lowered his gaze at the child, who slept through all the commotion. “Seems you have a new home.”

“I will leave him with you then” Námo said before disappearing back into his Halls, leaving to couple to deal with their rather unexpected and newfound paternity.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the next chapter!! Enjoy!!

“Well, now that our guest is gone, what are you waiting for?” Maedhros snapped Fingon out of his daydream about how beautiful Nelyo looked with a baby in his arms. The raven looked at him dumbfounded. What? “This little fellow here can´t sleep in one of our guest rooms, they are not implemented for children.”

“You… you want me to turn one of the guest rooms into a nursery? All before dark?” Finno didn´t understand. His nephew looked content enough in his husband´s arms, surely the nursery can wait until tomorrow.

“The most urgent thing right now is something to put him in so he could sleep peacefully” the redhead looked at him. “I have the baby, so you have to run all the way to Curufin´s house and ask him for Tyelpe´s old crib. It´s that or my parent´s.” he shook his head, remembering the last time Finno showed up alone at Fëanor and Nerdanel´s palace. “And while you are at it, get some diapers, blankets and a wetnurse. We are going to need all of that.”

“How am I…?”

“This is urgent, go!!” ordered Nelyo, awaking Maeglin. The elfling began to cry, which made the older nér make hushing noises and bounce the tiny form in a soothing way. Deciding to leave the baby to the expert in child-handling, Fingon ran out of the house for Curufin´s. he knocked on the door, hoping his cousin was of good enough humour to lend him the crib, when door opened and out came Tyelpe.

“Hello, did you ran out of green tea again?” the former Lord of Eregion asked in a friendly manner, smiling at his distant relative. “I just have gotten a few leafs; you can take some if you…”

“Sorry, I´m in kind of an emergency” the former High King said, not waiting for Celebrimbor´s answer before stepping into the mansion. “Do you happen to know where your parents store the supplies from when you were a baby? I might need some of them like right now.” His host´s face turned confused as he followed the nervous elf.   
“Sorry for the rush, it´s just that… he arrived just yet and…”

“Wait a moment, why would you mean that you need supplies for babies? What happened? Is everything okay?” he asked. The smith was fully conscious that male anatomy doesn´t permit two nér to have children, so how in the world would Maedhros and Fingon managed to get a child? Did they stole a newborn? Or something worse? And Finno didn´t provide him with answers.

“Maeglin” the other finally offered once Tyelpe showed him the basement, where the old forged crib sat. He moved it carefully, talking fast. “Aredhel didn´t want to take care of him, Turgon threw him out of my family´s state, Gondolindrim hunted him… the usual when dealing with kinslayers.”

“That doesn´t answer my question” said the younger elf. If the Traitor of Gondolin was at his uncle´s state, he must be occupying a guest room, one with a bed for a fully grown male. Why would he need a crib? Unless… unless Lómion had a child. But no, that couldn´t be. What nís would want to bear the Traitor´s child?

“It´s better if I show you, you won´t believe me if you don´t” now interested, the creator of the rings of power helped Fingon to find the old baby clothes and diapers his father had in store for when Tyelpe himself had children and followed the other to the house. There he found his uncle Maedhros sitting down on the living room, sipping some warm tea. The redhead lifted himself from his seat, opening his arms in welcome.

“Tyelpe!! I wasn´t expecting visits so soon” in fact, the Feanorian hoped to have a few more hours to find a way to explain it to his family before they freaked out. But now that his nephew was there… well, the elf was not much of a gossip, but his father had a habit of not being able to keep his mouth shut in the presence of Fëanor. And they lived together now. “I see you helped Finno with the supplies. Thank you.”

“I still don´t know what is happening here” Silver Fist said, looking around.

“Well…” a nís entered in that moment, holding a baby so tiny it couldn´t be more than a few weeks old. It was dressed in a tunic that looked pretty much like the clothes the returned wore when they left the Halls of Waiting.

“He is a healthy one, my lord. Eat like a little piglet too” the female said, smiling at the little creature that slept peacefully in her arms. She quickly passed him to Maedhros, who took him carefully not to wake him up. Fingon choose that time to disappear up stairs to install the crib, so they have a place to put the kid down for the night. Telperinquar approached, putting the baby clothes and diapers on the coffee table to take a better look at the babe. “I will retire now, my lord” the wetnurse announced, catching the néri´s attention. “If the little one wakes up, send for me, I will gladly feed him.”

“Thank you, Ólerydeth” the firstborn of Fëanor nodded to her with his head before returning to his young charge. Tyelpe´s eyes moved along with his. “She is a serving maid at our house. It turns out that she just had a baby and, when she saw me in distress earlier, she offered to be little Maeglin´s wetnurse.”

“Maeglin?” asked the younger noldor. “This is Maeglin?”

“Yes” Maitmo answered, sighing. “It turns out I´m no longer the only elf to commit suicide”

“Námo did this because he killed himself?”

“No, it was a little bit more complicated than that” a few minutes and an explanation later, Finno returned to the living room to an endearing image of Tyelpe holding the babe in his arms, cooing, while Nelyo smiled. Maeglin´s returned tunic was folded on the table and the child was now swaddled in diapers and a new onesie. A feanorian colours onesie. “you are very good at this for an only son.”

“I used to help with the children in Eregion” the ringmaker answered, bouncing the sleeping elfling lightly. “Awww, he is so cute!! I can´t believe he was considered one of the evillest elfs in history, if not the evillest.” He made some noises over the babe. “Or that someone tried to harm this little thing. Or abandon him.”

“Me neither” Finno interrupted, trying not to think of Irissë more than he had to. Part of him felt guilty for taking her child away from her, but other… well, Aredhel lost her opportunity. And her loss gave him and Nelyo an opportunity that was already making them happy. He didn´t want to lose it. “I see you already handled the wetnurse problem, Nelyo. And the crib is already installed, so he now has a room.”

“Hope that in the room closest to ours” Fingon nodded, happy that he thought of that too. If not, it would be another time lost moving the damn crib. “Well, I guess it´s fine then. We should get to sleep now that we can.”

“Why? I doubt he will wake up soon?” both Maedhros and Fingon stared at Tyelpe as if he had said something stupid. The smith handed the babe back quickly. “What?”

“Sometimes I forget that you are an only child. With the amount of brothers I had, it´s a miracle that Curvo only had you” the redhead said, handing Maeglin to his partner. Finno immediately rushed upstairs to put the baby in his crib. With some luck, Námo would have made him the age babies finally slept all night, because if he was something like Aredhel, they won´t be sleeping for a season. “Newborns tend to wake up every few hours. They need to feed, a change, a burp… everything.”

“Ahhhh” Celebrimbor said, making an understanding face. “So… you have everything you need now?”

“Of course not, but we can survive tonight with what you provided us” the redhead sighed. “Anyway, we should head to sleep now. That elfling isn´t going to sleep forever and we have to get up early tomorrow. Finno has to set up a nursery fit for a little prince and I have to buy furniture and other necessities.” He turned to the smith. “You can babysit for us.”

“Yes, it would be my pleasure” the younger elf said, turning around. “See you tomorrow?”

“If you want” Telperinquar ran away as quickly as he could, returning to the house he shared with his now single father. To return and find his mother had walked away on the entire mess, including him was a shock to him, but he got used to the situation rather quickly. That Curufin was the only person who raised him since he was six years old helped too. And it made lots of good for their relationship too.

“I´m here” Curufin´s tired voice alerted him that he was no longer the only lord in the keep. Telperinquar turned around, wondering how he will explain his absence from the forge the following day. And counting that his father was having reunions with his ex-wife and her new husband to recover some of his patrimony outside Formenos… well, he wasn´t going to be in the best of moods. “How about spending all the day in the forge tomorrow? I need some distraction.”

“I have something to do tomorrow” Tyelpe answered, hoping that it was answer enough for his father. Apparently not, because…

“Oh? And what could be more important than helping your grandfather and I?”

“I promised to babysit uncle Nelyo´s new baby”

“I guess that´s a very good excuse” Atarinkë said, not thinking through his words. “I guess Finno and Nelyo would have a lot of work with a new… WHAT?!!” the Feanorian turned around with an astonished face. “Nelyo and Finno had a BABY?! HOW?! WHEN did this happened?! HOW…”

“Calm down, it´s Aredhel´s baby biologically. She only… rejected him and Finno adopted the poor child. Uncle Maitimo got charmed by the kid and is helping with him.” Tyelpe quickly explained him, making some movement with his hands. “I gave them my old crib and baby clothes, they needed them more than I.”

“I see” Curufin said, trying to warp his head around the concept of Nelyo and Findékano being parents. Together, because each had their own children, adopted or not. And Aredhel having another child… he wasn´t surprised by that, the woman was promiscuous enough to have an army of children. Neither about her giving the baby to her brother, after what happened with the last one, but to give him to her GAY brother… even she would have her restrains about that. “Can I… see this child?”

“Maeglin is still asleep now, but you surely will be welcomed to help me tomorrow when I go to babysit while uncle Maedhros shops and Fingon sets up the nursery” his father looked at him as if he had a second head.

“Maeglin?” blurted. “I don´t understand, Irissë named her second son for the first one?”

“You will see tomorrow” his son promised, pouring some wine on goblets. He tended the first one to his father, who took it without a question. “Should be toast on Finno´s and uncle Nelyo´s new parenthood?”

“Cheers” they drank. “How should I tell this to my parents?” he blurted out without thinking, gaining a weird look from his son. “I mean… my parents surely will want to know that they have a new grandson. Adopted, but a grandson” he shook his head. “they know about Elrond, Elros, you… surely they will become enamoured with Maeglin once they saw him.”

“I don´t know” Tyelpe said, drinking more of his wine. Nerdanel will surely become entranced with the elfling once she put her eyes on him, but Fëanor… he didn’t know how a person like him would react to the news his newborn and his husband had adopted another kid. “I mean, he loves Elrond, why wouldn´t he love Maeglin?” even Tyelpe could list a few reasons. “We need to tell him now?”

“We can wait”

“Yes, we can” said Curufin, reaching for some new wine. “We can wait until I see what this is about, no?” Tyelpe nodded, not knowing what else to do. His relationship with Curufin and by extension to Fëanor have improved a lot, but that didn´t mean he was going to tell him everything. Right? RIGHT?!

-In Maedhros house-

“WAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

“It´s your turn” a half sleep Maitimo said as he turned around in his sleep. It was the third time Maeglin woke up in his sleep for the fourth time that night, doing the same thing to his new parents. Fingon tried to go to sleep, confident that his co-father would do everything for him this time. The only thing he got was a kick on the ribs that threw him out of his comfy bed. “I got the last one, you have to take this one.”

“Are you sure?” the redhead muttered, half asleep. Fingon tried to remember… dammit, Nelyo was right. Maedhros got to call Ólerydeth the last time, when Lómion was hungry and screaming bloody murder. Now it was his turn.   
“Alright, alright, I´m getting up!” he walked to their improvised nursery to check on the baby… Valar, what was that smell? It smelled as if something had died on that room. “Hey, little one” Finno tried to calm the babe with his speech. “You got a rough night, didn´t you?”

“AHHHHHHH!!!”

“Shhh, no need to bother your atya, no?” the Nolofinwion tried again, picking the child from the crib to put him on a nearby table, feeling his diaper, praying for it not to be what he thought was going to be. Unfortunately, it was warm in there. He unzipped the diaper and took it away… Dammit, that smell was repulsive. He took it away, to wash the next day, cleaning the baby´s bottom as best as he could with some towels. He finally put a new set of clothes on Lómion. “That´s right, little fellow, you are clean now. You are going back to sleep, no?”

The baby only made sound as he was rocked, until he went back to sleep. Finno quickly put him on the crib, hoping to grab a few hours of sleep before his nephew woke him up again. A few hours he could cuddle to Maitimo before Lómion woke him up again first thing in the morning. The redhead just grunted when he embraced him from behind, closing his eyes as he put attention on his breathing…

“WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!” another wail made the two parents open their eyes at the same time. Light poured from the window, signalling them that the morning started, even if they didn´t want. They woke up, grateful that elves didn´t need the same amount of sleep as edain. 

“Hello, little one” Maedhros lifted Maeglin from his crib, taking him to Ólerydeth to take his breakfast while the adults took a cup of coffee. After he finished, Matimo kissed Finno and the baby goodbye before exiting the house to bring everything that was needed for a good nursery. Fingon stayed alone in the house with the child…

“Hello!! The babysitter is here!! And his father” Tyelpe´s voice brought him out of his thoughts, making him walk to the entrance, where Celebrimbor was standing with Curufin… the eyes and ears of Fëanor. He sighed, knowing there was no way to escape his sight. “We are ecstatic to be here with this little thing” the smith picked up Maeglin, who cried a bit. “Oh, don´t cry. We are here for you.”

“Yes, we are” the fifth Feanorian said, looking at the baby with a weird expression. “I still don´t believe what Tyelpe said, but… I´m giving you the benefit of the doubt and… try to understand this situation” he got closer, staring at the tiny face. “He does have an air to Irissë” commented Curufinwë, calmer. “So… are you going to tell me how you ended up with an elfling son of Irissë named exactly as the Traitor of Gondolin?”

“Don´t call him like that” Finno said as he put the baby in a basket in the middle of the living room. “I will be up, setting up the nursery. If you want to help me, be my guest, but if not, try to not upset him too much. He gets very cranky when woken up.”

“Like Tyelpe when he was little” the other said, holding the child in his arms in an expert way that could only have come from practice. Fingon wasn´t surprised, Curufin was at least a fifty years older than Ambarussa and have a son, it was normal that he was so used to children. “You must be tired. I still remember the first days Tyelpe spent in this world, they were the most tiresome days in my life.”

“Sorry for being such an inconvenience” Celebrimbor said, pouting.

“It was not a complaint, or at least not to you” the Feanorian sighed. “Your mother tended to leave all the work to me and the nursemaids. It was hard, you were a fussy baby, but I enjoyed the time I got to spend with you” Celebrimbor nodded. So that was the reason he was so close to Curufin growing up. “And very cute.”

“I was not cute!!”

“Have you asked your Haruni Nerdanel? You were very cute” Atarinkë stated, sitting down with the child, smiling down at him. this made Celebrimbor feel something strange, something he hasn´t felt since Nargothrond. Like he could trust Curufin. “And this little fellow here is too. Ask your uncle Celegorm if you don´t believe me.”

“Oh, I believe you. That doesn´t mean I like it, but I believe you” he extended a freshly washed blanket on the table for when the baby was going to need another change. “So… how are we going to explain this all to grandfather?”

“Carefully, son, carefully”

-A few hours later-

“I´m home!!” Nelyo announced, as the entered with a small bunch of servants behind, carrying his packages. Fingon received him, along with the two babysitters, and immediately show him with great pride the nursery, now coloured a soft blue to emulate the sky, with many white clouds. And in the middle, proudly, stand the crib. 

“Woow, you did a good job, I´m proud of you” Maedhros congratulated him, ordering the servants with a hand to put the furniture and other things in different places. “Good for one day of work”

“Well, I have got a little help” the Nolofinwean answered, signalling the two visitors, who came with the sleeping infant in Tyelpe´s arms. “Without them watching our little son, I wouldn´t have finished in time.”

“I owe them thanks then” the redhead said, putting a hand on his brother´s shoulder. “So, did you have fun with your new nephew, brother?”

“Made me a little bit nostalgic, that´s all” the smith answered, watching how the things were unpacked from their respective boxes. “By the way, brother, have you thought of a way to break the news to our nostari? They are surely going to be elated when learning of your new parenthood.”

“I… will appreciate your silence… for now” Maitimo said, still wondering how to explain the situation to the two older elves. Nerdanel wasn´t going to be much of a problem, but Fëanor… maybe he was overreanting. After all, the famous smith never said a words against Elrond or Elros when Makalaurë introduced the younger twin to them. Neither of Elladan or Elrohir, when they visited after arriving.

“Even if I keep silence, you should know that this won´t be kept in secret forever. How many people saw you buying baby things? Thousands? More? Face the music, Nelyo, they already know it. Or if they don´t, they will soon catch the gossip.”

“That´s what I fear” said Maedhros, covering his eyes. This was going to be one hell of a mess to explain tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do you think Fëanor and Nerdanel took the news? They might accept it or they might not. What do you say? Should I put them on the next chapter? I´m always waiting for new ideas from readers!! Anyway, hope you liked this chapter. Send me a review if you did.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And to finish my birthday...

“Nelyafinwë was doing what?” asked Fëanor when a small contingent of elves came to offer gifts to the Lord and Lady of Formenos for their new elfling, only to be surprised when they were told that Nerdanel was not pregnant. In fact, the Prince and his wife haven´t had a physical relationship since his rebirth, as they were still handling some issues from his and their brood´s trip to Middle Earth. That´s why they were surprised when the gifts arrived. “Are you sure it was my son?”

“Very sure, my Prince” the leader of the merchants said, putting his own offer on the floor. A bunch of blankets richly embroidered with the Feanorian star. “He bought a few of my best clothes and blankets for infants, so we thought…”

“I understand” the noble answered, wondering what was truly happening. By his side, his wife was asking the same questions. “Perhaps we need to make Nelyo and his husband a visit… to check they haven´t done anything.”

“Maybe the Valar gifted them with something we don´t entirely understand” offered Nerdanel, calm as ever. She was as curious as him, but she refused to appear too eager to unmask the secret.

“I don´t know” her husband said, putting a hand on his chin. He knew the Valar, they were still mad at them for all the kinslayings and wars and theft and… everything. They won´t gift him or his sons with something like a new promise for his line. “Should we go right now? I have already finished with the forge work tonight and the statues for the next show have been finished for a week.”

“Yes” the sculptress nodded, despite wanting to continue with her work. She still didn´t know how her children, the children of two artists, could live in such a place as this fortress, devoid of ornaments until she arrived. Formenos could use some statues to add life to it. “Nelyo better have a good explanation for this.”

“Of course, dear” the two ordered the servants to grab the gifts and, along with them, went to the mansion their son and his spouse lived. They were greeted by a servant, which was an oddity. Nelyo and Finno normally preferred to answer their own door themselves. The next thing they heard was wailing from an infant, which confused them a lot. Their firstborn appeared in that moment, a bundle in his arms, Fingon gravitating around him in a panic. The couple stopped in their tracks when confronted by Fëanor, who just raised an eyebrow. “Do I want to know?”

“We can explain” Maedhros said before his parents could get more ideas. They all sat down in the living room, a still crying baby in the younger redhead´s arms, who was bouncing the little kid while Fingon gave the explanations. In the end, the older couple was thoughtful… if someone could talk with so much scandal.

“You two don´t have any idea, no?” Nerdanel said, taking the babe from her son´s arms and putting him on a nearby table. She started to massage his belly and back, which seemed to calm Maeglin. Finally, the child stopped crying, staring up at the woman with tears still in his eyes. “There, there, little mole. It´s better like this, no?” she picked him up again, rocking him to sleep. “Awwww, you are so cute. Yes, you are…”

“Woow” Maitimo couldn´t help but be awed. He knew his mother had more than enough experience with babies, she had seven children after all, but he did too and wasn´t able to calm the tiny being up. “He´s being crying for hours…”

“He just had cramps, a massage in the belly is usually all babies need to cure them. But in case it´s worse than usual, I have an amazing remedy for that. Before I go, I will leave it to you” Nerdanel said, still moving the child with a smile on her face. “It will probably disappear as he grows up, Carnistir´s surely disappeared when he started crawling.” Maedhros stared at them with wonder. He wasn´t even aware that Caranthir suffered from cramps when he was a baby! “What? Did you think you knew everything about babies because you helped us with your brothers?”

“Well… I…”

“Son, you helped a lot, but most of the things were definitely done by ourselves” Fëanor finally talked, putting his hands on his lap. “You didn´t have to stay awake for whole nights as a baby cried it´s lungs off until we found that remedy.”

“It… It happened more than once?”

“Ambarussa also had cramps, but less than Moryo” answered the genius, moving his head a bit at the memory of long nights trying to calm one of the twins as Nerdanel did the same with the other. “It was still tiresome, as it was two babies instead of one.”

“Ahhh” Maitimo commented, not knowing what else to say. “So… you are not angry?”

“Why should we be?” asked Fëánaro, raising an eyebrow. “Not only did you give a home to an abandoned child, but also gave us another grandson. And a cute one.” Much to their surprise, the smith seemed taken with his new grandchild, even if he was not of his blood. Well, a surprise for Fingon, who didn´t see how quickly the elf got attached to Elrond. “Unless you are talking about how long you took to tell us. That´s another thing.”

“It´s not our fault, we told Curufin and Tyelpe. We kind of… thought they would immediately pass the message to you” Nelyo tried to explain himself, cursing his brother inwardly for keeping his mouth shut when he shouldn´t. “Didn´t they work with you on the forge, atar?”

“Yes, but lately he has been a little bit busy, so I gave him a time off” informed the older raven, suddenly angered. “His ex-wife has been a little bit more difficult than we thought” he rolled his eyes. “She thought he was never going to come back from Mandos, so she could tear down everything he used to own and sell it piece by piece” He gritted his teeth. “And she has the face of being unreasonable when he is giving her a good deal.” Fëanor gave his son in law a look then. “Your ex at least was reasonable.”

“If you call throwing a ring to someone´s face reasonable” answered the other raven. Inside, he knew that he deserved it. Not only did he hide his sexual preferences to her, but he continued his relationship with Maitimo despite being married. Considering that, Lindë has been really reasonable. “Let´s talk about something else, how did you find out about Maeglin if Curufin didn´t tell you?”

“The traders told us” the smith said, signalling all the things the proud grandparents brought for their little miracle. “They saw Nelyo in the streets, buying baby stuff and thought it was us the blessed couple. We, of course, knew we were not, so we got curious and came here to find out the truth.” He informed, watching a sleeping Maeglin in his wife´s arms. “He is really cute, can´t believe Nolofinwë and his family simply abandoned him. Who could be so heartless?”

“I… I can only guess that… that they believed that he could… survive on his own… he was… an adult after all and… and…”

“Don´t try to defend them” Fingon was stopped cold by Fëanor, whose eyes suddenly held the fire he was so famous for. A fire of barely contained anger directed at his family. “Do you really think Nolo didn´t know something like that was going to happen? With Maeglin´s reputation and all of the gondolindrim around? One elf can´t deal with a mob by himself, no matter how skilled he is in combat, something they should know well.” Findékano felt a chill on his back. He didn´t want to think it before, but… “To be truthful, I´m surprised something worse didn´t happen” the older elf crossed his arms. “Even more, I bet one of them was the one that spread the news around in Tirion.”

“Fëánaro…”

“I´m sorry, dear, but I have to voice my thoughts. This child is not safe anywhere outside of Formenos and his new parents have to be warned” Nerdanel nodded, agreeing with her husband. But that didn´t mean that negative thoughts have to spoil such a joyous occasion. They have a new grandson that would be safe with them and didn´t have to deal with the Nolofinweans right now if they didn´t want. 

“Let´s talk about something else” she proposed, searching for a place to put the babe to be more free. A servant quickly approached and began to set the portable crib, a lot less elaborate than the one Tyelpe lend them but still beautiful, near the couch. Maitimo raised an eyebrow when he saw the amount of packages his parents have brought. “Just see how many things the traders gave us for the baby!! Surely you will find everything you need here.”

“Ammë, we already have everything we need, there was no…”

“Nonsense!!” the woman cut him, moving a hand. “You two have no idea how many things a baby needs. And don´t give me that look, as you received the twins when they were toddlers and Finno didn´t raise Ereinion” Maedhros was impressed, in one his mother disarmed them both completely. “A babe needs more that diapers and clothes, he needs toys, blankets, a basinet… and let´s not talk about the amount of clothes they need.”

“Ammë, this are too big…”

“Dearie, babies this age tend to grow a lot in a short time. That´s why you need different sizes of clothes, for when they outgrow their current ones” Nerdanel explained, showing them a tunic that would fit a four months old really well, but not the weeks old babe they currently have. “Listen to me, you are going to be grateful in a few weeks.”

“If you say so” the younger redhead said, not wanting to antagonize his mother. Then something came to his mind.   
“Since before I wanted to ask you if the cramps aren´t a signal that there is something wrong with him.”

“Hummmm, not really. Like I said, your brothers had it and it never really hurt them in the long term. But if you aren´t convinced, why don´t you consult with Elrond? He is a full-fledged healer, after all. He should know” the lady said, taking some yards of fabric. Her Maitimo knew how to sew, obviously, but he didn´t do it really well, so she better kept it and made something for her new grandson. “Have you written to him?”

“No… not really…”

“Well, you should. He has to come meet his new little brother” the woman said, a little bit scolding. “And while you are at it, you should invite him to the presentation party we are going to have for Maeglin.”

“We haven´t organized any presentation party”

“Oh, leave it all to us” Nerdanel said, folding the fabric again. “I haven´t had a chance to prepare something like this since Tyelpe was born, it will be fun. And Finno” the elf in question raised his head, looking at her a little bit surprised at being addressed directly. “Feel free to invite Ereinion. He should know too.”

“I… I don´t know if he would come…”

“That´s in his hands, dear, you just have to invite him” the redheaded nís lifted herself from the coach along with her husband before either of the new parents could say anything else. “Look at the hour, it´s already so late?” she changed the theme so quickly that she left her son and in law speechless. “Let´s go, Fëánaro, we still have an appointment with Carnistir before nightfall.”

“Yes, I forgot” the fire blooded prince answered, hugging his firstborn with affection. “Sorry for cutting our visit short, son, but we have things to discuss with your brother. Goodbye.”

“Enjoy your night, dears!!” and just as they came, Fëanor and Nerdanel left. Maedhros and Fingon looked at each other, not knowing what to do. Writing to Elrond? Or to Gil Galad? To explain them that they now have a younger brother that used to be the Traitor of Gondolin… Elrond might give Maeglin the benefit of doubt, but Ereinion might need a great bit of heavy convincing before he opens up to the child.

“Oh, just write the letter and send it, you don´t have to tell him anything about the baby until he is here. Or just don´t tell him his name, that might work to get him to act nicely with Maeglin here” Maitimo finally said when he noticed that, while he had finished his letter to Elrond a long time ago, Finno hasn´t even began his. 

“I don´t know what to say to him” the raven finally admitted. “We have written to each other now and again, but haven´t seen each other to the face since I divorced his mother. He… simply told me on his letters to give him more time to cool off.”

“I think he had more than enough”

“You don´t understand, I used his mother to…”

“Finno, really, you didn´t do anything she wouldn´t like” Maedhros moved his own letter in front of Fingon´s face. “Lindë has even used her connection to you to gain something. Or you think her engagement to one of Olwë´s sons is just a coincidence?” that was very unlikely indeed. “Just tell your son what he needs to know. He doesn´t have to come if he doesn´t want, but at least he will be informed.”

“I… I need more time…”

Three days later, he had a very formal letter written in his hands. That same day, a forged crib much like the one Tyelpe has given to them arrived along with a mole plushie that the baby loved at first sight. Maitimo examined the crib while Fingon just stayed there, seeing dumbfounded the thing with delicate patterns of Nolofinwean suns and Feanorian stars, the bars with little dancing moles and everything… something only Fëanor himself could do.

“Did he really have to do this?” he finally forced himself to say. “We already had a crib!!”

“I guess he felt he had to” guessed the redhead, ordering the servants to replace the crib in the nursery. “He made one for each of us, after all.”

“Really?” Fingon was surprised. He and his siblings shared the crib, as their parents thought there was no need to make a new one for each kid. “How was yours?”

“You don´t want to know” the older elf enigmatically said, finishing the conversation.

-A few days later-

There were a few knocks on the door. Careful not to wake up the babe, Fingon extracted himself from the bed in his piyamas and dragged himself to the door. He opened it. What he found on his doorstep made him wake up in one. Anairë was there, her form nearly hidden by a hooded cloak of dark blue fabric. 

“Ammë!!” he nearly jumped, realising that he had just appeared in front of his mother all dishelmed. He wanted to run back to his room to dress and fix his hair, but the nís went inside as if it was nothing. For the first time in his life. “Ehhhhh, if you give me a minute…” 

“Don´t worry about that. I have had new babies at home four times, I know how it is” she calmed him down. She sat down in his living room after hanging her cape, revealing her surprisingly simple outfit. “Now, under no other circumstance I would permit this, but I guess you and poor Maitimo need all the sleep you could get.”

“I guess” he answered, emulating her. And not knowing what else to talk about, he asked “How do you know about the babe, Ammë?”

“Ereinion told me. He believed that you are crazy or that your husband stole a child, but I had my own theories” she smiled at him, showing him her support. He returned the gesture. Of all of his family, she was the one that supported him no matter what. The one that never abandoned him. “And don´t worry, I didn´t tell anyone else or let him spread the news. You have a right to your privacy, like you asked in your letter” now he could breathe calmer. “So… are you going to introduce me to my grandson?”

“Ahhhh, of course, but… Maeglin is sleeping right now and I don´t want to wake him…” he nearly slapped himself. Anairë raised an eyebrow.

“Maeglin?”

“I… I can explain” he blurted the history, which the nís carefully with her hands joined in her lap. Fingon would think she was completely calm, but he caught the subtle way she clenched her fists. After he finished, they stayed in silence for a moment, with the son waiting for his mother to say something and the woman wearing a dark expression on her face.

“Must have been when I was visiting family in Alqualonde” she finally sighed, lifting her head again. “Because I didn´t have idea of my grandson´s rehousing and the horrible way he was treated by his family. MY family” she clenched her teeth before breathing in and out. “Anyway, I´m glad that he ended up with you. You surely will give him a good home. May he give you happiness.”

“Thank you for your well wishes” Fingon continued, then the conversation he had prior with his in laws appeared in his mind. “Ammë… I don´t want to insult anyone, but I have to ask… did our family have something to do with what happened to Maeglin?”

“I can´t say for sure” the nís answered with the truth. “But I saw Turúkano and Itarillë sneaking out of the state when I returned to talk to some of the former hidden city inhabitants. Now that I know the events that preceded those reunions, I think that reassuming contact with them immediately after the release of my grandson from Mandos too much of a councidence” Findékano´s heart jumped. So Turgon did… “Irissë didn´t do anything out of the ordinary… maybe she didn´t know the danger her son was in… or maybe she simply didn´t care.”

“Are… are you sure?”

“I am only saying that you shouldn´t let your son out of Formenos soon” the woman answered, very serious. Then she took something out of her pocket, passing a tiny package to her son. He opened it to reveal a bracelet with the symbols of the Houses of Fingolfin and Fëanor. TOGETHER. “I sang protection into it, may it serve you good.”

“Thank you, Ammë” he said, promising to hang it over Maeglin´s crib until he was old enough to wear it. “Atar and the others might miss you…”

“I told them I was going to Alqualonde for a few days, don´t worry” she assured him. “They won´t know about little Maeglin.”

“Even Irissë?” there was an uncomfortable silence between them until Anairë decided to break it. 

“I know why you are asking that, but she right now couldn´t care less about what happened to her child. It´s horrible to say this about my own daughter, but… she isn´t fit to be a mother” she sighed. “How about we make a deal? If she ever shows interest, I will tell her where my grandson is. Just so you stop feeling so guilty, because I´m sure that he will be happier with you than with his mother. Are you okay with that?”

“Yes, it´s a good deal” Finno said, smiling. He was about to continue with the conversation, when Maitimo appeared, as dishelmed as him, his slightly revealing night clothes and his red hair in a total mess. Not precisely the appearance he wanted to have when meeting Anairë. The Feanorian´s eyes went wide when he saw his mother in law there. 

“Why didn´t you tell me she was here?!” he yelled before running back upstairs. Crying started a few seconds later, which made the raven sigh, as he got up from the coach, extending a hand towards his mother.

“Do you want to know your grandson now that he is awake, Ammë?”

Anairë took to Maeglin immediately, cooing at him the whole time. The elfling just stared at her, behaving very good for her. So much that Fingon started to feel a little bit jealous of his mother. When she finally left, she promised to come back with things for the little imp, as she liked to calm the babe. Fingon smiled at her, saying goodbye with the baby in his arms.

“You charm everyone you meet, no?” he told the tiny child as he returned inside, hoping Maedhros would forgive him for what happened earlier. Maybe Maeglin would help him, no?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you like it? And the answer is yes, Turgon and Idril spread the news of Maeglin´s return so he would get mobbed by the gondolindrim. Unfortunately, things escalated even more than they thought and it ended up being something worse. Fingon and Maedhros are now warned, anyway, so I don´t think their little one is going to get out of Formenos in the next few centuries.  
> Well, Maeglin has met his grandparents... except Fingolfin, but I don´t think he might have accepted him. Now it´s the turn of the older brothers... or maybe just Elrond, as Gil Galad might still have conflicts with the Traitor of Gondolin. What do you think?


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!!! Sorry for making you wait, I was having some issues at home, but they are resolved now, so here the new chapter is!!

“Humm, this is curious” Elrond said, lowering the paper he had just received. It was a letter he received from Maitimo, a common enough occurrence since the redhead´s rehousing, but the information it contains… he knew that Fingon and Maedhros were so much in love, but he doubted that was the reason.

“What´s so curious, love?” Celebrian asked from the opposite corner of the room, where she was sewing new tunics for her twins out of the few rolls of fine fabric Maglor sent them with his last letter. She had her own couture room in the manor, but she enjoyed so much to be in her husband´s company that she often sat down to sew wherever he was. 

“It seems I have a new little brother” answered the peredhel, handing over the letter. “This is an invitation to the announcement party.”

“I´m confused. Shouldn´t such an invitation come from your birth parents? You know, the heterosexual, married ones?” the silver lady raised an eyebrow, leaving aside her needle and thread along with the fabric. “Because, last time I checked, Eru didn´t make male bodies able to conceive and carry a child.”

“Me too” the healer rubbed his chin before setting the papers down. He had resigned to not have any more siblings from the Feanorian line when Maitimo married his very male lover and Maglor simply decided not to remarry after his wife left him. “Should I go to Formenos tomorrow to make sure they haven´t kidnapped another kid?”

“Do you consider it necessary?” Elrond thought about it for a moment. Was that really necessary? If you didn´t take the Oath into account, Maedhros was a reasonable person that would never do something like that. He didn´t know Fingon very much, despite the many visits to their house and his livelong friendship to Gil-Galad, but he was sure that the former High King wouldn´t stand for something like that either. 

“No, but they also want me to make sure that the child is healthy, so…”

“If that´s the case, then you should go. The Valar know you are the only healer they trust enough to take care of their kid” Celebrian continued sewing, then stopped. “And while you are at that, you should give them a congratulations gift. I have some baby blankets somewhere around…”

“Why do you have baby blankets?” asked the peredhel, confused. Not that he was opposed to having another child, but his wife´s body was left weak by the orcs attack and the twins haven´t gotten married yet, so it was weird.

“I made them for when Elladan or Elrohir made us grandparents. But those two seem keen on remaining single, so I better put the blankets to better use before they develop holes in the fabric.”

“Yes…” Elrond left his wife searching for the blankets, still wondering how in Mandos he got a new baby brother from the most unexpected parent. That was certainly going to be an explanation he was looking for as soon as he reached the Feanorian fortress. He should also talk to Glorfindel to escort…

The Lord of Imladrys stopped himself when he remembered a critical detail in the letter. Maitimo asked him not to bring the former Lord of the Golden Flower under any circumstance nor to inform him about the newest member of the family. Why was the redhead asking him that? He meant… Glorfindel didn´t like his Feanorian parents much, but he also made sure to remain civil in their presence out of friendship. Besides, he had a soft spot for Fingon out of guilt for not arriving fast enough to save him in the Nirnaeth. And he surely wouldn´t dare to harm a newborn elfling, not matter who his parents were…

“Found them!!” Celebrian said proudly, showing him the little things. They were cute, with little feanorian stars (that were adopted by Imladrys) and Finwean suns in a shinny silver silk. Elrond smiled, already imagining a baby inside them. Too bad it wasn´t Elladan´s or Elrohir´s, he also wanted grandchildren he could actually met.

“Well, I guess I will take this to Formenos when I travel there this weekend” Elrond said, leaving Celebrian to pack up the baby blankets. He then talked to Glorfindel, who, as captain of his guard, has a right to know his lord was going to travel out of the island for a few days and that he was not going to be accompanied by everyone. The golden haired elf didn´t like it, but complied. After all, how Elrond travelled was his decision. He of course argued that he should at least take a few guards, but…

“Seriously, my lord, you should take at least the feanorian loyalists we have in the guard” Laurefindil tried to convince the peredhel to no avail. “I know you have done the trip to that dammed island and back a lot of times and that Valinor is perfectly safe, but a Lord shouldn´t be seen travelling without…”

“Glorfindel, please, stop worrying” the dark haired elf stopped him. “I´m only going to visit my fathers, there is nothing to worry about.”

Nothing to worry about? That place was filled to the brim with kinslayers and murderers the Feanorians protected with their Walls, claiming that their followers and others like them deserved a second chance. Just like they have received. The city had a less than stellar reputation, with many people avoiding it like the plague, specially the former lords of the fabled city of Gondolin. And that was the place his lord wanted to go to? He couldn´t allow it. But, at the same time, he knew that he couldn´t stop the peredhel if he wanted to see that blasted pair he called his parents. The golden elf could only thank the Valar that Fëanor took to Elrond as quickly as his sons, because without his protection…

“You still should bring a warrior or two with you.”

“I have visited the city before, it´s nothing new” the lord of Imladrys said as he walked away, listing a few things he was going to need for his visit. This trip was going to be interesting. 

-In Formenos-

“Come on, Maeglin, cooperate with me a bit” Maedhros said to the baby as he tried to force a truly horrible onesie on him. Normally he wouldn´t be so heartless as to inflict it on the child, but all the others were drying or being washed by the maids, so they will have to go with that. “Look, I know this is awful, but it´s the only one you have.”

“I think I have walked in on an important moment, should I come back later?” asked Elrond from the door, his eyes stopping when he saw the baby. “It seems that what you said in your letter was more literal than I thought. May I ask how this little charmer became part of the family?”

“Would you believe me if I told you that a Vala appeared in the living room and handed him over?” Elrond didn´t answer, not knowing what to believe. “That´s what I thought.”

“Well, considering that the biological method is out because of the physiology of your partner and that last time you adopted children into the family, it was because you drove away their birth family…”

“You never complained”

“Because I´m such a good son” the half elf walked towards the infant, pulling out a package of his bag. “I brought a congratulations gift. I would have also brought Gil Galad, but he seems to be fixated on the thought that you kidnapped the child…”

“If his trust in his father is so shallow…”

“Don´t be like that, your track record isn´t exactly exemplar, as I said before” Elrond rolled his eyes. “And Fingon tends to overlook rules, social niceties and whatever just to make you happy.” He returned his eyes to the child.   
“So… where did this little thing come from?”

“I told you, a Vala brought him to us when we started to seek for children to adopt” Maedhros sighed. “If you want the details, it´s going to be somewhat of a longer history, so I give me a few second to put on Maeglin´s clothes. Otherwise, he is going to catch a…”

“Maeglin? Interesting name. In the infamous way, of course” the younger elf said, searching through the contents on his bag. He then pulled out a onesie, which he handed over to his father. “Celebrian made him blankets, so I decided to add some clothes to our gift. Why don´t you change him into one of them and tell me why my new little brother is named after a known traitor?”

“It wasn´t my idea, he was already named like that when Námo dropped him off” the peredhel raised an eyebrow. Námo? What did he have to do with this tale? “I already told you, a Vala appeared in our living room and…”

“Wait, are you telling me that a Vala really gave you this child to care?” a nod of confirmation later, Elrond´s mind was turning fast. Námo… his intervention in the whole affair was a little bit strange. He normally didn´t mingle himself with the affairs of the Eldar, preferring his Halls most of the time. Besides, Námo was the guardian of the afterlife, not of new lives. If this little one was entrusted to the couple by the Doomsman… “Now I´m interested. Tell me the complete history.”

“It´s… please listen to me before you take an opinion” Maedhros asked of him before retrieving the baby and guide his foster son to the living room. Then he put Elrond to date on everything that happened, including the former identity of Maeglin and the theories they have about the Fingolfinian´s involvement in the events previous to the unorthodox reembodiment.

“Woow, this is surprising indeed. I have never thought a rehousing could work this way” the healer commented when the history ended, looking into the horizon. “Wonder if other being could be rehoused this particular way…”

“Is that all you have to say?”

“What else do you want me to say? That I´m surprised that Maeglin had to get his previous life erased to move on? About not expecting this from the Fingolfinians or the Gondolindrim?” Elrond sighed. “I´m sorry, but I can´t lie to you in such a way. Not when it can bring great damage to an innocent.”

“You consider Maeglin an innocent?”

“Were he an adult, I would not be so sure. But right now, seeing him in your arms, I´m sure he no guiltier than any other baby, the sins of his past forgiven by his pass through Mandos and his soul a completely new one by the grace of Irmo and Námo” he joined his arms. “But many will not think the same.”

“So you are also of the opinion that he should remain in Formenos for the rest of his days.”

“As a person who has caught Glorfindel many times mumbling against Lómion, even in the recent days, I am warning you” the two exchanged a serious look. “The Gondolindrim will never forgive, not even if the elf that brought destruction to their city doesn´t exist anymore” he then extended his arms. “But don´t concern ourselves with dark thoughts in this joyous occasion. A new arrival on the family is something to be celebrated.”

“Yes, Maeglin here has brought us a lot of joy. To all of us” Maedhros passed the baby to his son, who eagerly grabbed him, placing the child on his lap. “My parents even are organizing a party to present him. Me and Finno were hoping that you and Ereinion…”

“I don´t know if Gil Galad would attend” Elrond said, shaking his head. He personally considered his old friend´s attitude childish, but he didn´t mention that to the former High King. Or at least it was when he visited the man in Tirion a few days ago. “He is still convinced that you stole a child…”

“He better not say that in front of Finno, as he still feels a little guilty for taking his sister´s child away from her.”

“Oh, for the Valar, not another one” the peredhel said, exasperated. “I had enough of that when Maglor constantly acted as if we were made of glass during our first three years together and constantly apologizing for taking us away from our family.” He rolled his eyes. “As if that was a bad thing.”

“Thought you have sorted things up with Elwing”

“Well, yes… I guess” the Lord of Imladrys didn´t know what to answer to that. The reason he and Elwing didn´t fight anymore wasn´t that they miraculously fixed things, just that… they didn´t talk anymore. Like he and Elros learned to do back in Sirion. “I still prefer to visit you over her and Eärendil, if you must know.”

“Thank you, that makes me happy” the redhead crossed his arms. “But back with our conversation, you seemed to be disappointed with Finno´s attitude.”

“I´m not, just… I am of the opinion that you have rescued this kid, not taken him from his parents” he bounced Maeglin on his arms once when he felt him fussing. “From what I´m seeing, you are already giving him a better life than those two.”

“Anairë was of the same opinion”

“Then you should better hear her, she is the only one with sense in that madhouse that is the House of Fingolfin” Elrond continued bouncing the babe, but this one started to cry, so he passed the little one to his father. “Seems he likes you more than me, atya.”

“It seems so” Maedhros said, taking him. “She also said that… she will inform Aredhel about him if she asked.”

“Then rest assured, she didn´t ask. And for the better”

“You have a strong opinion…”

“And with a reason!!” the peredhel said, crossing his arms. “You should know the things they say about her around Tirion. Last time I was around there, I was told that last time Orodreth visited his father, Finduilas and Gwindor asked her to take care of their three years old daughter while they took a walk.” He shook his head. “Let´s just say that they won´t do that again.”

“What?” the Feanorion cradled the baby protectively in his arms. He was his, he wasn´t going to allow someone to take him form him, less of all an irresponsible woman. “What happened?”

“You should put the babe in the cradle before you squish him” Elrond instructed, serious again. Maitimo did so before sitting down before him again. “Princess Irissë is notorious for her promiscuity in Tirion. Fingolfin has gone to great lengths to hide that his daughter is the whore of his brother´s court, but…” Nelyo could tell. Gossip travels fast, after all. “Everybody knows.”

“The same happened with the news of my marriage to Fingon, despite this being Formenos” the redhead said, looking for a second to the cradle where Maeglin slept. “It´s a wonder we managed to keep this inside this walls.”

“It is” Elrond breathed before continuing. “When Gwindor and Finduilas left their child with Aredhel, a barely walking and talking babe, she saw fit to leave her alone, locked in a room, with no adult supervision just to see one of her lovers. And with such a poor thought that the room she left little Eleniel in was a sewing one.”

“For the Valar, was the child alright?”

“Better than her mother. When Finduilas finally managed to bring the door down, her girl was holding a pair of scissors in her hands, about to put them on her mouth” he shook his head. “The princess went into hysterics, descending upon her aunt like a wrathful spirit.”

“I would have done far worse had someone done something like that to you or Elros” Maedhros covered his eyes. No way he was going to give his son to such a woman, his mother or not. “What else?”

“Aredhel was surprised that the child didn´t took care of herself. She even answered: “But this worked on Lómion!!”” a tense silence was formed between them. “That talks a lot about the severe neglecting this child suffered in his first live.” They both were stressed now. “So, I think you are doing Maeglin a favour to raise him away from Aredhel.”

“I always knew she didn´t want to have children, but to do something like that” he covered his eyes. Then something came up in his mind. “I… wanted to ask you to perform a medical examination on him. Not that I doubt Námo, but I will be more comfortable knowing that there is nothing wrong with his health.”

“Of course” Elrond stood up and walked to the cradle. He had performed this kind of examination in thousands of children, so he knows how to do it. He began taking the measurements of the babe, who woke up again, irritated.   
“Don´t worry, it´s normal. No one likes to be manhandled like this.”

“It appears…”

“Hello, Maitimo, melmenya!! I´m ba… Elrond, I didn´t see you” Fingon said, surprised to see the peredhel there. Alone. “Is… is Ereinion here too?”

“No, he still believes that you stole a babe and nothing anyone tells him makes him change his mind” the healer said, still concentrated on the child in his arms. “Give him another month or two, he will surely come to senses by then.”

“But… he is going to miss the presentation party… and I wanted him to meet his new little brother”

“And he will, just give him time to find out there are other explanation to why you two have a baby” Elrond continued with his examination, now using songs to see if the infant had some sort of ailment. He was glad to discover that there was none. As every newly returned, the child was hale and perfectly healthy. “Lómion is perfectly fine, don´t worry. Now he only has to avoid damage from outside parties and he will have a great life.”

“Great” Fingon said, taking the child in his arms, making it squeal while Maedhros gravitated around them, happier than ever. The peredhel smiled at this, it was so wonderful... he did the right thing when he trusted Findékanno with his atya. “Who is the most beautiful baby? Who is?” after a few minutes, the High King turned to his step son.   
“Are you going to stay until the party, Elrond? Should I send the servants to prepare a room?”

“No, I was just going to stay for the day. If not, Glorfindel is going to have the ridiculous idea to come for me and I don´t have to say how much of a bad idea this is” Elrond explained. “But I will come back for it, with Celebrian and the twins.”

“Ahhhh, how are they?”

“You will see”

-A few days later-

“Woow, there is more people than I thought” Elladan commented when he saw the amount of people that populated the Halls of Fëanor. The dancing room the party was being celebrated in was richly adorned with herbs and berries, silver chandeliers with candles and crystals, which bathes the scene with the effect of a soft golden glow. The servants walked around with silver trays, offering wine and food to the guests. Maglor himself was playing the harp for the dancers in soft tunes, as to not disturb the babe who slept in the centre of the room, in a beautiful cradle for all to see.

“Of course” Elrond said, handing his and Celebrian´s cloaks to a servant. “You would be surprised of how many followed Fëanor. And how many of them looked for the safety of Formenos upon their return to this world.”

“Should be many” the silver lady called one of the servants, handing cups of wine to each of her family members. Just in time, as Fëanor himself called for silence, lifting himself from his chair in the High Table. 

“I thank you all, my faithful companions and friends, for gracing my house with your presence in this night of celebration. Many of you have may have heard that my firstborn, prince Nelyafinwë, and his husband, Prince Findékanno, has been graced by the Valar with a child. Many of you thinks how and others may have heard about a the child being Maeglin Lómion, Traitor of Gondolin, turned back into a child by Námo. I will tell you that is true” there was a murmur around. “But before you say anything I want you to think about some things. First, before he was handed to his new parents, Námo and Irmo erased completely all that made Maeglin the elf he was. He became nothing more than any other child who is starting to know the world. To my eyes and the Valar´s, the Maeglin that helped to destroy Gondolin is dead in the most definite way an Eldar or even a Secondborn could be” the audience´s murmurs turned to acceptance. Elrond breathed out in relieve. Until now, Fëanor was handling them impeccably. “And second, are we not all criminals in the eyes of the outside world? Are we not kinslayers, murderers, pariahs? Many say that, just as this child, we don´t deserve a chance to breathe again. But here we are, making the best we can out of our second chance. And if we can, why cannot this babe, who as I said, has been completely purged of evil? I trust my son and his spouse to show him right from wrong. To raise him to be someone of good.” The acceptance of his followers only grew, all of them clapping and roaring their praises to the Feanorians. The prince raised his cup along with his wife, followed by all his guests. “A toast for Prince Nelyafinwë and Prince Findékanno… and for their little Twilight Child.”

“For our Twilight Child!!” they all toasted, even Elrond and his family. The party reassumed and the peredhel finally got the chance to approach the babe that in other circumstances would have been his great uncle, but now was other thing. 

“Welcome to the world, little brother” he toasted in a murmur, raising his cup a little for this little one that, in any other part of the world, would be in mortal danger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you like it? I thought that perhaps it would be great to make Fëanor give a speech. He is, after all, a genius with the words. Or at least good enough with them to convince many people to cross the ocean with him and commit murder. And about bratty Gil Galad... he will come around soon, don´t worry. He is just having troubles with his father being gay for a Feanorion. Anyway, until next time!! Review!!!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! We are finishing August here and to celebrate that I give you a new chapter of this fic. Enjoy!!

Not for the first time, Círdan repressed the urge to roll his eyes. In front of him, his adoptive son ignored completely his flinch to continue ranting about his birth father and said nér´s husband. About the new, little addition to their family. And, while he could understand that Ereinion needed to rant from time to time, this childishness was getting tiring pretty fast. He meant… the elf has been going on for hours!! Over and over again!! He needed to make that stubborn child stop.

“What a great idiot he has been!! Allowing that demon to continue spreading evilness, separating another innocent child from it´s parents!!” the former High King continued, finally ending with the shipwright´s patience. “He should have returned the kid when he had the chance, but no, he stayed there and…”

“Ereinion, it´s enough!!” the older elf finally yelled. His former charge only stared at him with amazement. Was he yelling? Círdan never yelled!! He was too calm for that. “Listen, you are terrible upset about this, I get it, but I don´t think the child is what upsets you the most.”

“No, it´s definitely that child stealing…”

“Neither is the supposed child theft” the other interrupted, remembering him that he never confirmed this. “So, I will have to ask you some questions which might make you somewhat uncomfortable” Gil-Galad stared at the elder, confused. “Are you upset that your parents got a divorce?”

“What?! NO!!” the younger said, a little bit hurt. “You raised me better than that!!”

“I know, but feelings…”

“I´m not upset at them!! Quite the contrary!! I knew they were hurting each other by denying that their marriage was over a long time ago, I had eyes” he started passing around, another annoying habit Círdan needed to kick out of him. “I tried to help them to fix it, but as soon as Fingon revealed his true orientation and my mother stopped crying at her lost time… I saw it was a lost cause and that divorce was the best path.”

“And there is the mature young elf I raised” the shipwright clapped. “So, why are you so upset that Fingon remarried and adopted a child? You should know that eventually…”

“Oh, yes, I was prepared for him to date a man, find a partner, marry if he find a way to evade Fingolfin. The only problem was that he married a CURSED KINSLAYING FEANORION!! MAEDHROS BETWEEN THEM ALL!!” he raised his voice so much that the teleri wondered how he was not heard in Tirion. “Just saying his name…”

“I see” the shipwright continued with a calming tone. “You have a problem with his election of a husband” Ereinion nod, sitting down again. “Then… would you have accepted any other nér he would pick as his husband?”

“Well… no, I had to make sure that elf was trustworthy and not just a gold digger, but…”

“Do you think that Fingon could have chosen better?”

“Of course!!”

“But Fingon loved Maedhros. And he loves him back” Círdan reminded him, making the other feel uncomfortable. “And don´t try to deny it, you yourself saw how they were in their reunion.”

“Yes, but…” Gil Galad frowned. “When Fingon started to talk about this love of his life he had to leave to marry my mother, I… he did it with so much love it would have made a cat vomit” the teleri raised an eyebrow, but didn´t interrupt. “I accepted it, because it was obviously true love. But then I didn´t know it was Maedhros Feanorion.”

“Woow, you really hate your step father” 

“And who doesn´t? Apart from his crazy brothers and his even more insane father, I mean” he said. 

“You forgot Elrond”

“Elrond doesn´t count, he was mind warped”

“Yes, continue with that theory after centuries of knowing it couldn´t be more fake” Círdan added a few claps to enforce his sarcasm. “Come on, Ereinion, leave the negation state already. The way the twins ended up in Feanorion hands could be horrible, but those two made a good job raising them.”

“They still steal…”

“And you are forgetting a couple more things. Likely, the many explanations that could explain why that child ended up in Fingon´s and Maedhros custody that didn´t include child thievery” the former king gave him an incredulous look. “Come on, the kid could very well be a bastard that was given up by his parents to avoid scandal or…”

“That´s very unlikely to happen”

“Still” the shipwright rose from the couch, wanting nothing more than to expel the younger elf from his house. “Why don´t you go visit Elrond and ask him? He periodically visits Formenos, he must know the baby.”

“He won´t…”

“He will, Ereinion, everything to end this rant of yours” Círdan grabbed him by the arms, looking directly in his eyes with seriousness. “Look, child, I have raised you for your entire childhood and love you like my own, but you also have another family that loves you as much as I do. I know you have problems with your step-father and it´s been hard for you to accept that your father loves someone that´s considered a monster, but you can´t continue like this. You are hurting both Fingon and yourself with that attitude. And I hate to see you hurt.”

“I… okay, I will go see Elrond today” finally accepted the Noldor, putting on his cloak. “I will take the ferry to Tol Eressëa right now.”

“Great, I will give you a few snacks for the travel” the old elf walked back inside the house. “Now, where did I left the crabs?”

“Crab?” Gil-Galad´s mouth watered. He loved crab. It almost made the travel worth it.

-In Elrond´s house-

Definitely not worth it, no matter how delicious Círdan´s crab dishes were.

“So… you want me to talk to you about our common younger sibling?” the healer said, talking about it as if it was completely normal for two men to have a child. “Why haven´t you just travelles to Formenos to ask them?”

“Because is a place filled with the worst of the worst?” a glare was all he received for his efforts to be nice. “Look, it´s filled of Feanorian loyalists, how do you think they will receive a Fingolfinian?”

“Considering I never had any problem…”

“You are a special case, Fëanor accepted you as one of his own, don´t you remember?” the peredhel nodded, not entirely convinced. “Besides, what could I say to Fingon? Congratulations for marrying and having a kid with one of the evilest elves in the world? And, if you have to say something, say it to Quendingoldo. He wrote a book calling Maedhros that.”

“I will have a few words with dear Quendingoldo later” Ereinion shuddered, suspecting the loremaster was about to find out just how Feanorian Elrond was. “But I don´t know if I could talk to you about M… the baby. I promise I wouldn´t do that. To anyone.”

“Because he is stolen?”

“No, there are some… complications” the other crossed his arms. “How about this? I will take you to Formenos and there you can ask them yourself.”

“They would hide everything…”

“We can stay in Maglor´s house until you are convinced, I have the keys and he is staying at his parent´s for a few weeks, helping them with something” informed Elrond. “Then you will go straight to Fingon and talk to him. And try to get to know my father without that attitude.”

“But I…”

“That or nothing”

“Uggggh, deal” Elrond smiled, satisfied. He went to do his luggage and grab the keys before leaving, happy that he finally convinced his old friend to fix things with his father. Or at least to go to Formenos, to give the city a chance before judging it.

Ereinion, for his part, was not looking forward to his visit to the city ruled by Fëanor and his sons. He had heard terrible rumours about it, of a lawless city full of criminals and kinslayers only the desperate and merchants would seek… well, servants of the merchants mostly, because the wealthy ones didn´t dare to risk their lives there, but needed to send someone. The best smiths and metalworkers were there after all. Murders and robbery were on the daily basis.

“I still don´t know why you go there on a regular basis” the former High King said when they were finally on the ferry to the island. “Haven´t you been mugged or robbed on your meeting with…”

“Can you shut up? No one is going to do anything to you” the peredhel said with irritation in his voice. Then sighed and turned around to see his friend. “Gil-Galad, please keep your mind open. I know the kind of rumours that are running around in Tirion.”

“Oh, you mean those about murdering and robbery?”

“I mean everything” the other showed his hair behind his ear, annoyed. “Listen, Formenos is not as your prejudiced friends and courtiers says it is. It´s, in fact, even more peaceful than Tirion itself.”

“Look, maybe you are a little bit influenced by your love of your adoptive family…”

“Answer me a question” the younger elf said, gathering all the patience he had. “Have your bothersome friends ever been to Formenos themselves?” Ereinion quickly shook his head. “Well, I have. And, as a person who has visited the place, I can assure you that it´s perfectly safe.”

“But…”

“Prejudice is not going to take you anywhere. And for the sake of our friendship, I ask you to leave it out once we cross the door to the town” 

The former High King nodded, surprised by the aggressiveness in his friend´s voice. The peredhel haven´t talked to him like that since… Well, surely Elrond understood why he had to leave Maglor and Maedhros to their destinies after they stole the Silmarils from Eonwë´s tent. He had to.

They didn´t talk much until they arrived to the doors of island city. And Gil-Galad had to admit it, they were impressive. Big, ornate doors of pure metal with songs and carvings much like the doors Celebrimbor fashioned for Moria. He wondered for a second if the Ringmaker have also made this marvel, but he quickly dismissed that thought. They surely were a work of Fëanor himself. The guard said the secret word in an ancient quenya he couldn´t understand and the doors opened, revealing a city much like Tirion. Or even more fabled. Nothing to do with the disorganized, crime infested dumpster the courtiers assured it was.

“It´s… pretty organized to be an anarchy” commented Ereinion as they went out of the ferry.

“Yes, Fëanor likes organization” of course. If this place wasn´t an anarchy it surely was due to the control freak on it´s Throne. “Come, we will get to Maglor´s house faster this way” 

The peredhel guided him from the port to the nicer part of the city, where the sons of Fëanor and some of the Lords lived. And, even if there were some differences between the edifications on each part of the city, he could tell they were few compared to the ones in Tirion. The small shops and forges were many, but could easily house entire families with ease. Their products were of excellent quality too. He, as a noldor, could tell. Parks and fountains with statues and incredible waterworks adorned the city, making it even more beautiful than cities like Alqualondë and Tirion. The high class sector was pretty much like that too. It had more carriages and luxuries, but pretty much the same. The manors were big, but austere in comparison to the Capital. Even the ones with the star. And all parts of the city were decorated with exquisite metalwork, statues, carvings on stone… everything to do with art.

“We are here” Elrond announced when they arrived on a mansion with eight pointed stars and harps carved everywhere. Definitely Maglor Feanorion´s home. “You can use Elrohir´s room, it´s the closest to mine except for Maglor´s.” they looked at the door at the end of the hall. “Don´t get in there. It´s connected to his music room and if he finds even one quill out of place, he will throw a fit worthy of his father.”

“You talk about that as if it´s normal”

“For him, it is” the Lord of Imladrys said, putting down his baggage before guiding his guest to the kitchen, where he opened a bottle of wine. After serving, he sat down in front of Ereinion. “And… what do you think of Formenos so far?”

“I give it to you, I was mistaken” the former High King drank a bit of wine, enjoying the sweet taste. “This place seems to be almost as organized as Tirion” he passed a hand through his braids. “I suppose there isn´t as much crime as the courtiers murmured either, no?”

“As much as there is in Tirion” which meant none, Gil-Galad thought. “So you see, kinslayers can also be a productive and stable part of society if they wanted to adjust. To try again” Elrond looked at the roof. “Formenos gives them that opportunity. This is the city of the second chances.”

“Great” the other answered, frowning. This city… he came with a very strong prejudice, something that all inhabitants of Tirion shared, but… apparently, they were all wrong. How could so many people been so wrong at the same time? There has to be a sliver of truth to that. But if it wasn´t? If it wasn´t, then he hadn´t talked to his father in months for… Valar, his father! “How is Fingon doing?”

“He lives in the mansion next door with Maedhros” Elrond informed. “We can go see them now if you want, they must be putting the baby to bed right now.”

“No, I just… want to know how they are doing… with the baby. That… it´s okay. The child, I mean, that the child is okay.”

“The window of your room is perfect for spying, specially their nursery” the peredhel simply said. Ereinon gave him an incredulous look. “What? You said you wanted to see how they interacted with the baby without alerting them, so I gave you the room with the best view.”

“Thank you” the former High King got up and walked to his room, hiding behind perfectly embroidered curtains (did Míriel managed to send gifts from the Varie´s Halls or what?). He stared through the windows and…  
Maitimo was there, picking up a little someone and holding him in his arms, bouncing him a little. It was obviously the child. A tiny child, but from distance it seemed he was well taken care of. He or she was fussy, apparently not wanting to go to sleep yet. He must be the age to start crawling by now, no? His mother told him he was like that too when he started crawling. It took a lot of effort to put him to sleep and Fingon… Fingon was still there then. Yes, he was. Gil-Galad… Gil-Galad was already walking when The Nirnaeth happened. Was his father like that with him? He didn´t remember…

“Are you alright?” Elrond asked, entering the room long after the light in the nearby nursery went off. He crossed his arms when he saw Ereinion on the floor, sad. “Did something happened?”

“Nothing, just that… I´m going to watch them for a few more days.”

-A week later-

“Okay, I´m ready” the former High King announced in the morning, finally sure that he could talk to Fingon without accusing or pointing fingers at anyone. Even his husband. 

“Ready for what?”

“To see… them. And to hear some explanations” he lowered his gaze, no longer so firm in his decision. “Let´s go before I lose my gumptions and decide to stay here for the following week too.”

“Okay, let´s” the lord practically had to drag him to the house Maedhros and Fingon shared. The short way, Gil-Galad was trying to practice in his head what he was going to say to his father and… step-father when they arrived at their house. Too soon, by the way. Why in Mandos had the sons of Fëanor to live so close to each other and their parents? Had they not heard of independence? “Atya! Great to see you.”

“Elrond, I didn´t know you were in town. And with… company” Maitimo said, surprised to see his step-son there. He knew the elf didn´t approve of his marriage to his father, but this first visit gave him hope. And, even if Ereinion didn´t give him the chance, the smile Findékano will have by the end of the day will make it totally worth it. “Welcome to our house, Gil-Galad. Had you announced that you were coming…”

“I didn´t want you to know. I need to make sure that… whatever” the mentioned crossed his arms. He felt ridiculous, acting like a spoiled child, but right now he couldn´t care. He still didn´t like the redhead. “You still have to explain how you got that child.”

“You already saw that we are taking good care of him. And that we love him as if he were our own” the Feanorian said, while Elrond took a pre-emptive step between them. “Do you really believe we would hurt him by tearing him from his family?”

“I believe that from a person with an history for stealing children”

“Then let me ease your fears, that child was given to us by Námo himself” the former High King´s eyes widened. Did the kinslayer actually expecting him to believe that? There was no way the Valar would reward a Feanorion with something as precious as a child after all the crimes he committed. And, even if that was true, it would be that the baby had some sort of shady past… or something like that. “If you don´t believe me, ask Finno”

“Of course I will” the former High King said, entering the house. The yard was big, with a central pound with a big statue of black stone. A stone he could swear he hasn´t seen before. “And… where is my father?”

“Taking care of the baby” Maedhros explained, being careful not to say much. “I will take you there.”

Without another word, the two younger elves followed the Feanorion to a small room littered with toys, where Fingon rolled a ball for a small elfling, who followed the thing around. The smiled on his face was… was… did he smile like that when he was playing with baby Ereinion? No, he couldn´t think like that in that moment. Now he had to… something pulled on his breeches. He lowered his gaze and saw that the elfling had lost interest on the ball as he entered the playroom and crawled towards him. He lowered his body, gathering him on his arms.

“Ereinion” Fidékano finally greeted him, a smiled on his face. It was beaming, as if this were the happiest day of his life. “Glad to finally have you here.”

“Yes, I´m here” the younger elf answered. “We can finally talk”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gil Galad is acting like a spoiled brat, so much out of character, I know, but he really didn´t like the Feanorians and still think they are bad, so even making a trip to Formenos is taking a tax on him. It will get better once he admits it´s just another normal elf city. And that Maedhros and Fingon are good parents. Well, the history we will see that in the next chapter! Review!


	6. Chapter 6

“I´m so glad you are finally here that I don´t know what to say”

“How about “go away and take the brat with you, Maedhros. I´m having a chat with my son”?” Gil Galad begin, glaring at the redheaded elf while fighting the elfling´s greedy hands, who seemed entranced with the former High King´s braids. Elrond gave him a disappointment look. The other ignored him in favour of the kid in his lap. “Can you make him stop?”

“Why? He seems to like you” Fingon continued, enjoying the brief bonding moment his sons were having. 

“Because he is going to put a jewelled hair ornament on his mouth and possibly choke himself with a stone?” Ereinion said, grabbing the strand of hair and pushing it out of the child´s reach. Maeglin simply gave his attention to another strand. “Does he have a fixation with hair?”

“Only with dark one. He never does that when Maitimo is holding him. I think he doesn´t like red... for now, at least” the Valiant gave his husband an apologetic look. “Dear, can you”

“Sure” the older elf walked towards Ereinion, picking the kid up before turning to his other son. “Come on, Elrond, let´s pay my parents a visit. Surely my mother has another anatomically correct statue she wants you to inspect.”

“I´m dying to see it” the three of them exited the room, with a crying elfling over the kinslayer´s shoulder. An elfling who was extending his hands towards the father and son duo, as if he wanted to join them. “Awww, don´t cry, M… little one. I´m dark haired too” Elrond said, showing the baby his braids, soothing him. “See?”

“Is there something you are not telling me, Elrond?” asked Gil Galad, half closing his eyes. 

“No, I´m just letting your father explain it to you. Didn´t you want to have topics to talk to him about?” the healer answered, escaping from the room before he could let the name slip before Ereinion and Fingon had time to talk things out. Because that would be a way to complicate things, no?

“Like I said, he seems to like you” Findékano blurted out when his son finally turned to him. This one raised an eyebrow. Didn´t he thought a better conversation theme than the baby in all the time he spent quiet? “And he doesn´t like many people. You should see him when cousin Moryo babysat for us the other day…”

“Really? You leave a baby with a kinslayer?” Valar, talking about irresponsible parents. Well, irresponsible if both of his parents weren´t kinslayers themselves.

“Well, he is not our first choice, but no one else was available that night. Normally we ask uncle Fëanáro or Curufin, but…” clearly he was not making it better, so he decided to shut up. “Sorry, I´m just glad you are here.”

“I see that” the other said, sighing. “You never know what to say when you are happy. Or at least that is what my mother and Círdan said.”

“Yes… Círdan” Fingon tried to swallow the jealousy he felt when the shipwright´s name was mentioned. That he got to be a parent to his son and Finno couldn´t… that was a bitter pill to swallow. “And… how are you? Did something happened?”

“No, I… just pondered it and decided I was ready to talk. And… well… spy a bit… just to make sure you are truly happy with… Maedhros” he made a face. “He seems to be good for you.”

“He is.”

“And the baby too”

“Of course” the other laughed a bit. “Reminds me a lot of you” the elf bit his lips. “You were a more active elfling, of course, but you both loved to be tossed up in the air. And… and to spend with me the afternoon, while I work.” He sighed. “I will never forget the afternoons you spent in my office, making me company.”

“Hope I could remember that too” Ereinion said, feeling something strange in his heart. Happiness, perhaps? Happiness that he used to be close to his father, despite the short time he had him? “I… wanted to apologize.”

“There is nothing to apologize for”

“But there is” the former High King finally managed to look at his father. “I shouldn´t have reacted how I did. You… you told me you loved a Feanorian, I should have been prepared to accept a kinslayer as your future spouse. Perhaps… try to be less mean?” he sighed. “It´s just that… I really don´t like Maedhros.”

“No one asks for you to like him” Fingon said, but Gil Galad still felt a little bit guilty for not contacting him for so long, despite his father´s many attempts. “No, yonya, I´m serious. I´m not mad about you not liking the man I love.”

“But…”

“Dear, you lived during a time when he reached his lowest. And when he did the worst things he had done in his life. No one blamed you for not liking that Maedhros” Findékanno grabbed his hands. “The Maitimo I knew and loved it´s very different from the one you met during that dark time. The pressure of the Oath in his soul and losing so many loved ones… no one blames you for not liking Maedhros Feanorion.”

“But… Elrond has nothing but praises about him…”

“Try to talk to Elrond about his suicide, then you will see how he turns those praises into harsh words” the other laughed. “Stupid, depressed fool is one of his favourites.”

“Depressed” Ereinion smiled. “I saw him only a couple of times, but back when I was High King, Maedhros looked really depressed. Especially when addressing me directly.”

“Well, he reached his deepest point when I got myself killed in such a stupid way. He himself admits that he was depressed when… you know, went lava dipping” Fingon shook his head. “Elrond was really worried about him the first days after his reborn. Me too, if I have to be sincere.”

“Ah”

“Let´s talk about something else” Finno changed the conversation, playing with one of his half golden braids. “I heard your mother is going to remarry, good for her. I wanted to send my congratulations, but she asked me never to contact her again…”

“That hasn´t changed”

“Ah”

“Olwë agrees with her too”

“Ahh”

“And the teleri, as a whole, demands that neither you, nor your husband or any of his family puts a foot on their domains ever again” Fingon nodded, a little bit depressed. Kicked out of his mother´s homeland, wonderful. “Cheer up, you are not banished from Tirion. In fact, your mother wants you to come with us for Ulmo´s day… or she would, if… well…”

“I know” Findékanno said, a little bit bitter. Was it really such a pain for Fingolfin to accept him as he was? Being gay was not a crime, for Manwë´s sake!!

“It´s not because you are gay, anymore, it´s because…”

“Maitimo, I know” he sighed. Such a bitter pill to swallow, right, atar? He thought, leaving his teacup on the table. “It´s okay, I was going to Nelyo´s family gathering for Ulmo´s day. Tell her we appreciate the invitation, but don´t want to intrude on anyone.” He rolled his eyes. “How have you been?”

“Great” Gil Galad automatically answered, without even thinking. “Have been alternating between Tirion and Círdan´s new place in Alqualondë” there it go again, the jealousy. “And when I´m not practising with the lance or the sword with Turgon or ridding with Finrod, I´m sailing in the sea” Ereinion smiled. He had a teleri heart after all. “I even managed to convince Eärendil to let me climb into the Vingilot once.”

“Seems great.”

“Yes, sailing he night sky was one of the best things I have done. I would have liked Elrond to accompany me, but he said that the day he climbed into that dammed thing, was the day he went lava diving.”

“Still having problems with them, I see” Fingon sighed. “I… Formenos has great beaches for sailing too. If you want to come one day, I…”

“You know how to sail?”

“Ehhhhh, no?” the other blushed a bit. “But I would love to learn. And there are some great places to ride in too, Maitimo and I go every weekend to… or well, used to go before we got Maeglin…” Findékanno covered his mouth, realising too late his mistake. “Anyway, we can go ridding…”

“Wait, did you said Maeglin?” Gil Galad asked, looking at him as if he were crazy. “You mean the baby? You two named him Maeglin? Why?”

“Be… Because he IS Maeglin” his father confessed, knowing that there is no way back. 

“Really? As in the Traitor of Gondolin? Maeglin Lómion? The City Destroyer? That Maeglin?” the nods from his father confirmed it, making dread and anger spark in his chest. Then something else. “Of course” he started to rant. “If the Valar were going to grant two kinslayers something as precious as a child, it had to be because the babe had a shady past…”

“Ereinion…”

“I don´t know why I was expecting better from you or your husband…”

“Ereinion, please…”

“You know what he did!! How many people died, how many he sold to Morgoth!! And you are sheltering him!! Sheltering that monster from the punishment he rightfully deserved!!” he lifted himself from his seat in a rage. “Even his own mother disowned him and you go and claim him…”

“Ereinion, please, Lord Námo and Lord Irmo gave him this second chance…”

“Even so!!! He is a murderer!! But then again, so are you” he said, turning his back to Fingon´s expression of absolute despair. He went out of the house, not looking back…

-Hours after-

“I thought I would find you here” Elrond said, sitting down in the bench near his friend. 

“Were you spying on me?”

“No, if I were, I would have stopped you before you make Fingon cry. And in such a way. Maitimo have to spent hours hugging him to make him stop, leaving me to babysit that grabby brat.”

“You mean the little monster”

“Don´t call him like that” the peredhel said harshly, glaring at him. “He got reembodied in special circumstances that you should try to understand at least. Námo erased his memories completely, he is just a normal baby now. The monster you are talking about is already dead in the most permanent way, his victims avenged. The Maeglin of now isn´t the culprit of what his last incarnation did, no more than any other baby.”

“But he…”

“And even if he were, you shouldn´t be such a prick to Fingon about sheltering him. He is just giving a hand to a family member that needs it when the rest of the family turned their backs on him.”

“But it´s bloody MAEGLIN…”

“Yes!! But you know what?! This isn´t about Maeglin, this is about you!! And your relationship with your father, which you are ruining!!” Ereinion jumped at Elrond´s outburst. Since when he was so angry? “You don´t know how lucky you are… You have a biological father apart from the adoptive one that actually wants to reconnect with you and you are ditching him…”

“Ah” Well, that explained it. The peredhel was projecting his own parental problems on him. He couldn´t really blame him, he guess, as his own biological parents didn´t make the effort to reach him until he was living for a few centuries in Tol Eressëa. And, when they did, it didn´t went really well. “You could have come to the Vingi…”

“And how was that going to help me?” the healer raised an eyebrow. “Eärendil has his head in the stars. When we talk, he only babbles about his boat and his skies… he never asks about me or the things I like. It´s a safe conversation, but it gets tiring after a few times.”

“Elwing…”

“Worse” the other rolled his eyes, remembering the last conversation he had with his mother after FIXING it. Or more how she talked about her new style while he ignored her. “Star Head is awesome compared to her.”

“And how are Maedhros and Maglor?”

“Even a sleep deprived or baby vomit covered Maedhros can recognize when I need to rant about my day and listens carefully to give me advice. And Maglor can hold his own in medicine, or studies enough to hold a conversation about the new healing hymns and poultices.”

“Parents of the year”

“Look, he is trying, okay? Very hard, because he cares” Elrond explained, as if he were talking to a stubborn toddler. “And he has done nothing wrong, so give him a chance.”

“I… I guess I was a bit of a jerk to him” Ereinion admitted, scolded. “Should apologize” they both got up, ready to return. “But the little brat better keeps his hands away from my hair…”

“It´s a phase, don´t be so hard on him” the peredhel explained, remembering his own children. “A few months ago he was obsessed with Maitimo´s hair, now it´s Findékanno´s turn… give him a few days and he will be tugging at uncle Tyelkormo´s silverly locks like they are the prettiest thing in the world.”

“As long as it´s not Itarillë´s”

“Low blow” they walked back to the house, where Fingon, more calmed, was resting in Nelyo´s arms, embraced. The redhead noticed them first, sending a glare to Gil Galad, but softening it when Elrond´s eyes met him. He then shook Finno a bit, managing to get the other elf to lift his head from his chest. Baby Maeglin was in his fence nearby, tossing around his toys.

“Ereinion” the golden braided elf smiled at seeing him, making the guilt in his son´s heart grow. “I…” he then turned to his husband. “Nelyo, dear, can you give us some privacy”

“Guess so” the Feanorian said, lifting himself from the couch. “But if he makes you cry again…”

“I get it” Ereinion assured, sitting down besides his father. He sighed. “First of all, I´m sorry. I should have let you explain before jumping into conclusions. Elrond already told me that this reembodiment is… especial, but… care you explain me?”

“Yes, of course” Fingon said, happy to have something to talk about. “Lord Námo appeared into our living room one day and told us that he erased Maeglin´s memories and turn him into a newborn. To have a new start, according to him. And we… we wanted to try… to be parents together, I mean. So we gave him a home.”

“I get it”

“Don´t get me wrong” a nervous Fingon continued, as if he hasn´t heard. “I wanted to tell Irissë and give him back if she wanted to have him, but then news of his disownment reached us and then Turgon´s and Itarillë´s grudge and my sister´s questionable parenting methods…”

“You mean what happened with little Eleniel?” Gil Galad asked, remembering the incident very well. Finduilas and Aredhel had a screaming match so loud that it rivalled those of Fëanor and Fingolfin back in the Age of the Trees. “No one has dared to put a child on aunt Aredhel´s hands since then.”

“Us neither” confessed Fingon, looking at little Maeglin biting a stuffed duck. “He has been a blessing to us.”

“I´m happy for you” he said, with no little amount of jealousy. “Now that you got a chance to raise a child with the man you love…”

“Ereinion” Finno said, grabbing his hands. “Look at me” he did, surprised by the understanding he showed in his face. “He is not a replacement for you. You are my son and my very own blessing. There is no way I will stop loving you because of Maeglin. Just like Maedhros hasn´t stopped loving Elrond.” His hand moved to his face. “I´m sorry we didn´t have much time together when you were little, I wish I have been there for you when you need me, but… it couldn´t be. I´m just glad Círdan… did a good work for you.”

“Love you too, atto” they hugged, finally understanding each other. “I guess I got a little…”

“Jealous? Yes, I know the feeling, but don´t know why. Elrond never felt it”

“Elrond is used to share the love of all of his parents, including Star Brain and Cold Turkey” they laughed at the imaginative nicknames Elrond assigned to his birth parents. “I, on the other side, was an only child of all of mine.”

“Well, then, think of it this way. I used to have one son and now I have two. Two little boys I love the same” he grabbed Gil Galad in a big hug that the other mock fought against. “And if you ever want to be an only child again, you can go to… Círdan.”

“Yes, he… wait, are you jealous of Círdan?” Finno didn´t answer, blushing a bit. “You are!!”

“Well, I have a right to be. He raised you!! Something I should have done!!” Ereinion continued laughing. “What´s so funny?”

“That we were both jealous over something idiotic. I have enough space in my heart for the both of you, you big baby.” The former High King assured, making the other smile. “If Elrond has space in his heart for three fathers, then I have for two. And I never really forgot you, one of the reasons I never called Círdan atto.”

“Really?”

“Yes, he was always ada” they both laughed. “We are hopeless, are we not?”

“Yes” Fingon agreed. “Two peas in a pod.”

-Days later-

“And then we hugged and made up” Ereinion finished his story to a smiling Círdan. The teleri will not say it out loud, but he was very glad it ended so well between his foster son and this one´s father. Especially when he mentioned he had plans to visit Formenos more frequently now that he lost his fear of the place. “Have to say, none of my fears were real. The baby is really a gift from the Valar, which I´m glad for. He´s brought nothing but happiness.”

“See that you were being paranoid?” the shipwright said. “How was the babe by the way? Was he cute?”

“A lot… which gives me a lot of other questions, actually”

“Yes?”

“Yes… what do you think about nature vs nurture, ada?” Círdan rolled his eyes. Here goes another rant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we got a reconciliation scene!! Hope you enjoyed it, Fingon and Ereinion really needed some bonding time, father and son bonding time. Maybe now he can start knowing Maedhros and bury the war axe. Anyway, I was planning the next scene to be one with Glorfindel, but I also think a scene with the twins would be great, so... it´s up to you!! Elladan and elrohir or Glorfindel, what do you say? Review!!


	7. Chapter 7

Glorfindel frowned as he saw the Lady Celebrian sing while she embroidered formal clothes for the twins. Next to her was a big, handmade stuffed rodent that reminded him uncomfortably of someone he used to know and won´t mention here, because if his name was uttered his already sour mood would turn even worse for the day. He stared through the window at Lord Elrond, who was plucking some herbs in the garden.

“Oh, captain, were you not in your vacation?” asked the nís when she finished with her job. “I thought you would be already in your way to Alqualondë.”

“In fact, my lady, I was going to spend my vacation in Tol Eresseä. It has, after all, beautiful beaches and…”

“Come on, Lord Glorfindel, you surely have better things to do than go to the same beaches you have been going to for at least three centuries” the silver haired woman said, putting aside the clothing. It was placed precariously on top of the mole (yes, he said it, a mole. How much he hated those animals!!) “Why not to go to Alqualondë? I heard it´s pretty this time of the year.”

“If I had to do something different with my vacations, I would go somewhere not full of beaches” the golden elf answered, smiling at her. “Don´t worry, my lady, I will find something to do in…”

“What is going on?” Elrond asked, entering the room with his hands full of herbs. His eyes landed on the mole that was still proudly sitting in his wife´s sewing room, making him a little bit nervous. Not much and it was concealed quickly, but that fraction of a second was enough to make Glorfindel think there was something fishy there.

“Nothing, honey, we were only chatting about where the captain was going on his vacations. Which, by the way, started this morning” 

“Interesting” the peredhel said, leaving his basket on the side. “Why haven´t you taken off yet, Lord Glorfindel?”

“Last minute things with the new recruits, nothing that couldn´t be fixed with a few training sessions” assured the golden elf. “Maybe I should postpone my vacation to put them to the point…”

“Of course not. Besides, you have other things to do, no?” Elrond produced a piece of paper from his robes that made Glorfindel gulp. “Prince Turúkano sent this to me when you failed to respond his last three letters. Apparently, you have been invited to the annual reunion of the former lords of Gondolin. Again.”

“Well, I… didn´t want to go, really” he blabbered out. Seeing his former fellow lords in an ambient full of liquor and food… the last time he tried something like that, it didn´t end well. “Really!! The last thing I want is to see Salgant´s face while he stuffs himself with our food and drink as if nothing happened, and if that bastard Maeglin dares to appear again to ask forgiveness…”

“Wait, he appeared in one of the reunions?” the healers hand clenched. What was Lómion doing with the last people that would accept him? Perhaps a last desperate attempt to gain his family back. 

“In the last I went, yes” the last and only, thought the golden elf, frowning. “He wanted to talk to Turgon about something… didn´t heard well, because he was being dragged out by Tuor. I didn´t saw him again.”

“Then you knew he was rehoused.”

“Of course I knew, half of Tirion and more than all of Gondolin knew” he rolled his eyes.

“Then fear not, I know from a very good source that he committed suicide a few years ago and Lord Námo decide to give him a special punishment. It´s unlikely that you will cross paths with him again”

“How are you so sure? Suicide doesn´t prevent rehousing. If it did, MAEDHROS wouldn´t be here.”

“They are completely different cases” said Elrond. Glorfindel was not so sure, but he didn´t manage to say it, because he was suddenly escorted by his lord to the door, where a stern Erestor waited with two horses. The golden elf wanted to ask what, but he already knew the answer. And he didn´t like it. “But don´t talk about this anymore. You have a reunion to be in, no?”

“My lord…”

“Don´t say thank you” the peredhel pushed him towards the councillor. “Erestor is here to make sure you arrive well to your party. Enjoy your party!!”

“It´s just me or is he hiding something?” asked the captain. The only answer he got was a rein in the face, followed by a mocking neigh from Asfaloth. He threw the horse a glare, but he only got more laugh in return.

And his fellow Lords of Gondolin were the same. By the time he arrived in Tirion; Tuor, Duilin and Rog were too inebriated to even hold a talk without giggling like idiots, let alone hold a serious conversation. He rolled his eyes as he accepted a cup from Ecthelion. It was a good wine, not like the one those three lunatics were drinking. He gave him a nod of thanks and started drinking, sitting himself down very away from Salgant, who was drunkenly playing his harp. Very badly.

“Well, at least Maeglin isn´t here” he commented, serving himself a saving of meat. 

“Oh, he won´t be here for a long time” Turgon said, starting to look as inebriated as his son in law. Luckily Idril was not there, preferring to spend the vacation season with her mother in Valimar, or she would have already grabbed those two by the ear. “Believe me”

“Let´s stop talking about that rat, it´s going to give us indigestion” suggested Galdor, a little bit tipsier than Turúkano, but still capable of hearing. “You said that Elrond is keeping secrets from you, no?” Glorfindel nodded. “And that´s unusual?” he frowned. He wouldn´t be talking about it if it wasn´t unusual. “No need to give me that look, mate, just answer.”

“I´m doing that”

“Are you sure that he is hiding something?” asked Tuor, his interest suddenly perked. “Humm, that peredhel… I wasn´t aware that he could keep secrets.”

“Really?”

“Really! He doesn´t like my son and doesn´t hide it!!” the drunken fool went through another path, making the golden lord roll his eyes again. “He calls his father Star Brain too”

Well, Glorfindel thought that Eärendil actually deserved that last name. He meant… the older half-elf did have his head in the stars most of the time!! He had heard a lot of conversation between father and son and realised that the blond needed more conversation themes than the skies he sailed and boats. That would actually boast his relationship with his son. And take the Feanorians out of Glorfindel´s hair, but that was another matter.

“And what are you?” he said to pick on the other. 

“Tuor, to my depression” the human answered, taking another swing of alcohol. “Not grandpa or even grandfather. Tuor.”

“Don´t be so hard on yourself, neither I nor Itarillë have pet names from him” Turgon joined the conversation, his circlet twisted in his head. “But I won´t be too concerned about that. From what I learned, Elrond is a particularly boring person. Whatever he is hiding it´s probably not worth the pain.”

“I wouldn´t call him boring…”

“Believe me!! It´s going to be alright!!” the Finwean grabbed him by the shoulders, making Laurefindil wonder how much he had to drink. “What I truly would want to know is what is Finno doing in Formenos right now.”

“Well, that´s not really a mystery, is it not?” Rog said, emptying his cup over Salgant´s head. “Every person that´s been married knows what your brother is doing now.” 

“Apart from that?”

“There is an apart from that?” Tuor asked, remembering his own honeymoon and first few years of marriage… Maybe that was why Eärendil came so soon after the wedding night. “I thought that for elves there is not apart from that until year ten.”

“Cheers for that” the Lord of the Hammer said, a wine decanter in hand. “But I think that pervert like them are different…”

“How? The only thing Finno was thinking in when he moved with the kinslayers was in Maitimo´s ass and the many ways he could fuck him” Turgon made an expression of disgust. “I could barely believe it when my father said that he went with them to Formenos.”

“Yes?” Glorfindel´s brain gears started to work when Formenos was mentioned. “Now that I think about it, Elrond is making more trips there than before. He even takes Celebrian or the twins with him more than usual.”

“Really?”

“And he doesn´t take me anymore” the golden lord frowned. What was with Formenos that was tickling him off?

“That´s strange” Turgon said, but soon was laughing. “Maybe he is rescuing dear cousin Maglor from the lovely couple!! Isn´t he their neighboor?”

Laughs cackled around. The Lord of the Golden Flower just rolled his eyes. His companions were ever the same, they couldn´t take anything serious when drunk. That´s why he hated reunions. He continued eating while the other lords drank themselves stupid or drop to the floor unconscious… all but Ecthelion, who was a measured as him. And considerate enough to help him drag everybody to their beds in the morning before leaving for his own house. He loved Ecthelion a lot for that. But not enough to stay for the day.

“What are you doing?” Erestor asked when he found Glorfindel untying Asfaloth in his stall in the stables. 

“Finding out what in Mandos Elrond is hiding. And I know where to start searching” the golden elf answered, grabbing the reins of the horse. 

“I was instructed by the lord to make sure you remain here”

“Do you know what he is keeping secret? He confides in you as much as in me, you should be aware then” the councillor didn´t answer, just glared at him. It was enough answer for the captain, who smiled in victory. “Doesn´t it tick you off? That he doesn´t trust us enough to tell us his secrets?”

“He must have his reasons…”

“We are his friends too, you know? He should trust us with this.” He got into Asfaloth. “I will inform you when I return.”

“Wait… I will go with you” Erestor announced, pulling his own horse out of the stable. “What will I tell the lord now?”

“Tell him that I decided to change the place of my vacations” the golden elf said, pulling his hood over his face. Determination shone in his eyes. “Itarillë says that Valimar is beautiful this time of the year.”

-In Formenos-

“And… what do you see?” Erestor asked, putting his hands on his head. He was already regretting following the mad captain to Formenos. As there was no inn near to the Feanorian mansions, the two of them didn´t have any other option but to spend the night in the roof of Maglor´s house. Which, as comfortable as it was in the inside, it surely wasn´t like that in the outside. 

“That… Rog and Tuor had a lot of reason” the Lord of the Golden Flower said, disgusted. Also admired because of the stamina those two have shown. He had been watching them for a good part of two hours and they were still going at it.

“You would have to be more specific, as I wasn´t in the reunion”

“How to describe it? Things that would traumatize both Elrond and Gil Galad for live?” Glorfindel said without taking his eyes out of the window connecting to the couple´s room. “The horizontal dance? That was popular between the Edain when Estel was king.” The other gave him an expression of disgust. “Hey, don´t be like that. We are trying to find Elrond´s secret here, I need to spy the people closest to him.”

“And if you hadn´t been oh so occupied watching live pornography, you would have noticed that they have a nursery in the room next to them.”

“What?” his eyes moved from the master bedroom to the other, where he could see the outlines of a cradle. Some toys too. Stuffed animals the most abundant between them, like in many babies’ rooms. There was a stuffed duck in one corner of the room, some dogs, a nice cat, and crowning the cradle… a mole. Glorfindel had to bit his tongue to refrain to say something out loud. Why was it always a mole? And not just A mole, now that he noticed it, a whole family of them was littered around the room. Tiny moles, live sized moles, big moles, elfling sized moles… MOLES, MOLES!!! 

“What is it with kinslayers and moles?” he asked, clenching his fists hard enough to turn them red. “First Maeglin and now those two. Is there a conspiracy or something like that?”

“I don´t believe so” Erestor answered, as uninterested as ever. “But now that you mention it, Lady Celebrian has been embroidering mole themed baby blankets a lot lately. And I know for a fact that the twins aren´t expecting children soon.”

“Then it must have been for them” the older elf stared at the nursery, wondering if he would be able to see the elfling that must be populating it. But it was useless, there was no child in the room. Was it a spare room for a nephew? Probably, as the couple themselves couldn´t have children.

The next day Maedhros and Fingon finally emerged from the room, both sated and eager to go somewhere. So eager that they rejected breakfast in favour of going to… Fëanor´s place? Well, his forge, if he wanted to be specific. Glorfindel hid himself, praying to evade the mad genius gaze. The man was so sharp that he would probably notice him in a second. Luckily, it was Curufin who answered the door, letting them in. they stayed a few minutes, exiting the place with a tiny thing in Fingon´s arms. The thing moved a bit in the raven´s arms, revealing that it was an elfling. A very young one.

And then the questions started. Where in Mandos have they gotten the elfling? Because he was plenty of sure that two néri couldn´t have a child. If they were a normal, heterosexual couple, he wouldn´t even ask that question, more with the scenes he had just witnessed, but as they were both male… and another thing, why were they raising a child? The Valar wouldn’t have put a tiny, innocent being in the hands of two kinslayers…  
Erestor put a hand on his shoulder, ending the inner monologue.

“Think we solve the mystery” the raven said, watching the two of them strolls through the streets, baby in arms, love practically dripping between them… the picture of an ideal family. He could see now why Elrond wanted everybody outside Formenos to leave them alone.

“I wouldn´t call it solved, not if we didn´t know where they got the child. Where did it came from?”

“Well, when atar and ammë love each other very much…”

“That only works for heterosexual couples.”

“Then atar and atar…”

“Two males can´t have a child”

“I was going to say adoption” Erestor glared at him. He was not ignorant of the facts of the biology, thank you very much. “You know, like Maedhros and Maglor did with Elrond and Círdan with Gil Galad.”

“Adoption is a pain… only when the adoptive parents is not Círdan.”

“You are so negative with this”

“What else could I be? Two men, one with an history of stealing children, are walking around with a baby. Do you not see the relations?” the other raised an eyebrow. “Come on, Erestor, there is not unwanted elflings in Valinor. How else could they have gotten one if they didn´t steal it?”

“You are talking about a child as if it is a thing. You shouldn´t do that” the councillor said, turning around. “And there are many other explanations to why they have a baby with them, some very veritable, taking Feanorian loyalty into account.”

“How would you know?”

“My parents were Feanorian loyalists” he answered, very seriously. This threw Glorfindel aback. Has he been friends with a kinslayer all this time? Probably not. Erestor was too young to have participated in the first three kinslayings and the fourth was perpetrated only by the two last Feanorions. “And, talking about them, I should go and visit now that I have the chance.”

“Wait, are you going to leave me? Er… Erestor!!”

“You better arrive to the Ferry in time, because if you not, I´m leaving you here and telling Elrond everything. See you, captain!!”

“Wait… wait…” 

Glorfindel, now alone, dedicated the rest of the day to stalk the couple, trying to see how they behaved with the elfling. They were really dedicated parents, he had to say that. And a sweet couple. But he was still not convinced. The elfling… it could be in danger, dangers he couldn´t see from the roof. So, to make sure, he entered the house silently and walked to the nursery. He opened the door to it and walked to the cradle, waking the elfling in the process. The baby blinked his eyes cutely and extended his arms. But Laurefindil didn´t fell tenderness at all. Those eyes… they were like a bucket of water falling over him. 

“You” he spat, grabbing his sword. “How could you? How dare you?”

“He dared nothing” a voice behind said, as the pointy edge of a blade was pressed into his back. Glorfindel looked over his shoulder to see Nelyafinwë Maitimo, sword in hand, ready to kinslay again. “But I will do if you don´t drop that sword and get away from my son this instant.”

“He is not yours, he is not anyone´s, not anymore. And this” he pointed at the elfling. “it´s more than he deserved.” 

“The Valar wouldn´t agree with you”

“To Mandos with the Valar, they didn´t live what I had to because of this vermin…”

“You better drop it, Laurefindil” Fingon joined the conversation, walking straight to the baby´s cradle and picking him up before retreating to his husband´s side. “You are not going to touch a hair on my son´s head. And dare to make a scratch on my husband and you are dead” the elflord drop his sword, but not his tense position. “With that being said… dinner anyone?”


	8. Chapter 8

Glorfindel, Fingon and Maedhros sat in the couple´s living room, the two having rejected Fingon´s idea of a late dinner, not looking at each others. From time to time, the blonde´s eyes landed on the elfling in the younger Finwean´s lap, who didn´t understand a thing of what was happening around him and decided to take a nap. Findékano held him in place, warily eyeing the elf lord sporadically, while his husband didn´t look at all, but has a hand on the pommel of his sword, ready to attack if the other made a move. And the Balrog slayer wanted so much to do one.

“So… do you want to hear the history behind this all?” asked the raven, hoping to ease the tension before his mate kinslayed again in their own living room. 

“Not really” the lord of the Golden Flower said, his hand near where he hid a dagger in case he had to throw something. “And I don´t believe there is any explanation possible to make me forget that…”

“Of course, you won´t”

“Maitimo”

“But he won´t, Finno. He doesn´t care about the circumstances or anything else, he just wants his revenge…”

“Stop, would you?” the Fingolfian said, glaring at the redhead. This disturbed the elfling a bit, who yawned and opened his eyes to stare at his adoptive parents. They both lowered their heads to him, until Fingon finally sighed.   
“Look, I will go to lay him down now. I´m trusting you two not to kill each other, so I better not return to a bloody mess in my living room or someone is going to know something worse than a Balrog.”

“I sincerely doubt it” Glorfindel answered, sticking up his tongue. Maedhros growled, but didn´t move from his place in the coach. A thick silence descended over the two elves immediately after Fingon and Maeglin left the room. It was so uncomfortable that… “So, you got tired to steal children and adopted a rejected one.”

“Drop it”

“Oh, no, I want to hear it. Did you intimidate Aredhel into disowning him or you just waited sitting down? Because I won´t blame you if you did, because I would also disown a son like…”

“I said drop it” Nelyo growled again, trying to control the volume of his voice. Maeglin tended to get cranky when he didn´t sleep enough and if he woke him up again… well, he wasn´t going to get anything from his spouse any time soon. 

“And what did you do to shrink him to that size? Did your father invented another dreaded contraption that is going to make us all become babies? Or was it your nephew experimenting again with objects of power? I still remember what his last try caused.”

“Don´t you dare to mention my family.”

“I will do it whenever I want, kinslayers and madmen you are”

“I should…”

“Should what, Feanorion?” the two great warriors looked at each other with murderous expressions, each with a weapon in his hand. Glorfindel evaluated the risk. With the other kinslayer out of the room, he might have a chance to kill this one, despite his skill, and…

“He is finally asleep, so please keep your voices down” Findékanno entered the living room without the child in his hands. Glorfindel eyed him with cold and calculating eyes, lowering them to the sword that hanged from the other elf´s waste. “I don´t want to spend the day trying to tame his bad mood.”

“I wouldn´t want that either. It was legendary in Gondolin. Before he destroyed, that´s it.”

“You should forget about that”

“And you should wear longer sleeping robes, but with your tight sexual agenda, I can understand why you don´t” both hosts went bright red. Maedhros tried to cover his legs with his gown, damming the moment he decided not to change the pyjamas he was sleeping in yesterday, but he didn´t want to dirty more having perfectly clean ones.

“Idiot”

“Smartass”

“Were you spying on us?” Fingon threw the golden lord a look that was so much like the ones his brother threw him during his time as king of Gondolin that the other shuddered. And felt compelled to answer.

“Well… Lord Elrond was keeping secrets from me, something that was not usual on him. And I guessed that the only people he would do that for was those kinslayers I don´t know why he loves so much.”

“In other words, you wanted to mess with Elrond´s business and came here to find whatever he was hiding from you, despite knowing full well that there was a reason he was hiding that from you…”

“Yes and it´s because he loves you and wants you to be happy!!” Laurefindil was screaming now, his fury blowing up again. “He is even eager to stand that rat because of you!! Something I don´t know why, because of all the beings who took something from him, you and your brother should be first on the list!!”

“Get… out” Maedhros growled, pointing at him with his sword.

“You don´t tell me what to do”

“Oh, it´s like that? In my own home?” the redhead continued. “It´s obvious now why Elrond decided to keep it a secret from you. Obviously, despite it all has been forgiven and forgotten long time ago in Mandos, you continue to hold onto your resentment…”

“And why are you hiding away with your family in Formenos, Feanorion?” the legendary warrior spat with a good dose of venom. “Was it not because your victims haven´t forgotten exactly who ended their first lives? Because if it´s not like that, I will gladly give you a remind to why you are not welcome in the continent anymore?”

“Laurefindil of the Golden Flower” Findékano made himself be heard, using that kingly voice Turgon used in all the official occasions. The Lord of Gondolin couldn´t help but shudder again. He got that voice even better than his younger brother, probably from having to command a rabid four times kinslayer into a peaceful life. “I refuse to have you as a guest in my home if you are going to act that way towards my husband and son. I demand you to leave right now.”

“With pleasure!!” he stormed out of there.

“Damn bastard” Maedhros said, finally dropping his sword once the other has left his house. One more second and he would be explaining to Námo the new incoming in his Halls and to his father the bloody corpse in his living room. “As if I didn´t know that my victims haven´t forgotten me…”

“Please, not again. It´s creepy when you start to say the names of all the people who sent hate letters to you”

“It helps me to remind why should I hate myself for”

“Then I will have to get in and remind you why you shouldn´t” Fingon kissed him in the cheek, making the redhead smile. He didn´t know how, after all the pain and suffering he had brought, the Valar blessed him so much. “Are we having this discussion again. I thought we agreed to leave depression behind for each other´s sake.”

“It´s that bastard´s fault” Maitimo crossed his arms. “He comes here, tried to kill our child and yells at us as if he has the fault for some imaginary slight against him and the gondolindrim” he rolled his eyes. “The ass also made fun of my sleeping robes”

“We won´t let them get him, melmenya, nor your parents or brothers. If they want to get Maeglin, they will have to pass over the collective dead bodies of Formenos. Let´s see who gets the worst reputation after that” Findékano said, smiling wickedly. “And I love your sleeping robes. Short or large.”

“Which means I probably will have to hide the short ones once Maeglin starts to talk. They must be showing too much skin” Maedhros continued with the conversation to lift the mood, not feeling sleepy at all. “Why don´t we turn this late dinner into an early breakfast?”

“Pancakes?”

“Is there a better breakfast?”

“It sounds…” pounding on the door made them all turn towards it. Fingon sighed and pulled his robes tighter around him, expecting to find Glorfindel there, ready to yell more offensive things to them. Fortunately, it was only Erestor, who entered without being invited and walked directly to Maedhros.

“My lord, I heard about the secret from my parents. Are you okay?” he asked, clearly concerned. In times like this, he hoped Elrond would confide in him. He wouldn´t have told Glorfindel… or let him come to Formenos if he knew what was happening. “Is the little lord unharmed?”

“Yes, fortunately no one got hurt” the redhead looked at Fingon and patted the couch next to him. His husband understood the gesture, taking seat next to him. “Guess we now know why Elrond didn´t let him come to Formenos since the baby arrived.”

“Of course, none of the gondolindrim has forgotten the Fall and will never forget” the councillor said, rubbing his arms. “But right now I´m more worried about the reaction of the masses about lord Maeglin´s return.”

“Would they believe that?”

“If it´s Lord Glorfindel, the great hero and Balrog slayer, they surely will. And people like Prince Turgon or Princess Idril will not care that your son is a child now, they will come for him” Erestor bit his lip. “I didn´t want to tell you yet, but some months ago Lord Elrond put me in charge of discovering the fate of lord Maeglin the first time he was reborn.”

“I thought it was public knowledge that he took his own life under a bridge in Tirion after being disowned by my family” Findékano said, trying not to think about his father and brother. 

“It´s a little bit more than that” the steward sucked in a breath. “And gruesome. Do you still want to heard about it?”

“It´s not about what we want to, we need to know, Erestor” Maedhros answered in that pragmatic way he always did. “We are his parents now, we have to know what to shield him from.”

“Well” the younger elf started. “I began my investigation in Tirion itself, in the palace of prince Nolofinwë. I conversed with one of Princess Itarillë´s ladies in waiting and found out that an hour after the prince threw his grandson out of the house, her lady and her father sent messengers to the Lords of Gondolin with secret orders. The next night was a gathering of former gondolindrim in Prince Turúkano´s house. Now, getting information about what was discussed inside of the reunion was hard, as all the attendants and servants were gondolindrim or their families, but I found one particularly chatty page that, after a drink or two in the tavern…”

“Erestor, resume it, please. Did Turúkano declared an open season for Maeglin hunters?”

“You are correct, Lord Maedhros” the elf nodded, flexing his fingers in anxiousness. “That in turn provoked a reaction in the vengeful former population of Gondolin that became a mass hunt for the poor boy and, I´m horrified to say, to the capture and posterior torture of the prince Maeglin in the basement of a smithy.”

“What?” Findékano asked, not wanting to believe it. He knew that the elves could be vengeful sometimes, but to step so low as to torture someone like orcs? The former high king didn´t want to believe it. “Are you saying that they kept him captive?”

“Of it was only that, I wouldn´t have waited so much time trying to find a way to break it to you, especially after finding out about the… special circumstances surrounding prince Maeglin” the steward continued. “But they did things unworthy of the Eldar, all with the knowledge of Prince Turúkano and his daughter. I have a list somewhere…”

For the next half an hour, Erestor described the many ways those elves have broken Maeglin´s soul, leaving it a husk of fear and desperation so deep that he took his own life. At the end of it, both elves were horrified, one more than the other. Maedhros was biting his lip, trying to not to think of his own torture. It was not like Angband, it wasn´t even a shadow but… it was still horrible. And Fingon was completely white. The idea that his brother and niece condoned the torture of a family member by blood, no matter what he did… it horrified him. And the thought of something like that happening to his baby…

“Thank you, Erestor, for such an eye opening report” Maitimo finally said, once the councillor ended. “Guess you will now go to report the same to Elrond?”

“More like to do some damage control, but that is part of the plan, so sure” he lifted himself from the couch, bowing to each of them before turning to the door. “I bid you good evening, my lords, and good luck in this.”

“To you too, Erestor” Maedhros replied, giving his husband a concerned look. Findékano looked like a phantom now, so pale after hearing that his little brother has condoned something so monstrous as torture that the redhead thought it unnatural. “Good evening and thank you for your information. It has been… eye opening” 

The young steward quickly left, leaving the couple alone. Maitimo turned to his spouse in worry, only to find him getting up. As if in a trance, Finno walked up the stairs, directly to the little one´s room. There Nelyo saw him look into the crib silently. After an hour of him not moving, the redhead walked up to him and put his hands on his shoulders, affectionately and supportive.

“He is going to be alright”

“So tiny and defenceless… he was like that when he first arrive to us. And still is. To hear that something so horrible happened to him and might happen again in the future…” tears felt from his eyes. “it rips my heart.”

“They won´t have him” the Feanorion whispered to his ear. Despite his low voice, Fingon could sense the power on his voice and felt somewhat safer. “They will have to pass right through me and all of Formenos to get to him.”

“I wouldn´t survive losing you too, my love.”

“You won´t have to” Maedhros assured him. “Have some faith in Elrond, he will know how to deal with Glorfindel. And if he couldn´t, Gil Galad might lend us a hand in handling Turúkano. He loves his little brother” they both smiled, thinking of their eldest sons. “They both do.”

“I´m still not convinced, I don´t want to leave him alone while Turno… Turúkano is still a treat”

“My love” Maitimo caressed his face. “How about this? Maeglin can sleep in our room tonight, so he doesn´t get out of our view. It will calm both of us down, don´t you think?”

“Yes, of course” Finno smiled as he carefully picked up the child and carried him to their bed. They might not be able to sleep that night with the images of the torture and the possibility of another kinslaying dangling over their heads, but watching the baby they considered theirs sleep between them, safe, made it bearable. They just hoped they would be able to protect him.

-Tirion-

Glorfindel has finally arrived to the capital, ready to march to Turgon´s house and tell him everything about Fingon, Maedhros and Maeglin. He wondered for a second in how much time an army of gondolindrim could be ready to march over Formenos, because a battle will surely break out. The kinslayers will surely put up a fight, not wanting them to murder one of their own, but surely they would be able to overpower them…

“Are you sure of this?” he froze as his boot touched the first step to the entrance. He turned around and saw Elrond there, wearing a Lorien travelling cloak Galadriel gifted him when he was herald of Gil Galad. “Are you sure this is the fair thing to do and your resentment is not guiding your hand?” 

“And you, my lord? Are you talking because you sincerely think he is innocent or because of your love of the Feanorian?”

“Fair thing to ask” the peredhel extended a hand towards him, the light his body emitted showing that he was using his maia powers. “Walk with me? It´s better not to talk about sensitive things like this in such a place.”

“Don´t try to use your maia persuasion on…”

“Oh, no, I´m not using that in the least. I only used them to protect us from prying eyes until we have finished our talk” the golden elf crossed his arms. “Glorfindel, you have been my friends for millennia now. I think you between all know you can trust me.”

“I know, my lord, but since you started keeping secrets from me…”

“It was for their protection and yours, Lauro. I knew your feelings about Maeglin would cloud your judgement” the healer said. His captain considered it for a moment, finally reaching a conclusion. “I only want to talk, believe me”

“I do, Elrond” he answered. “Let´s talk then”

“Not here”

The Lord of Imladrys took him to a clearing in the woods, where the moon light could be easily seen, but the trees kept them from the public´s eyes. The both of them sat down there, ready to have a private conversation.

“Before you tell me anything, you know I have always hated that you considered those kinslayers your parents…”

“I know” the peredhel smiled sadly. “I´m sorry you feel that way, but… guess what was done so long ago can´t be undone so easily. Eärendil might have a special place in your heart, but for me… he simply doesn´t feel like my father, despite our mutual attempts to fix our relationship” he sighed. “Maedhros and Maglor were the father figured I had, so they feel like that.”

“And that´s why you tolerate Maeglin…”

“It´s not that way” Elrond said. “When Maeglin took his own life out of desperation… you should understand him, he was abandoned by all the family he had ever known, tortured and dispossessed of everything…”

“Sorry for failing to feel bad for him”

“I was only trying to explain the situation” he said, not losing his calm. “And maybe you are right, he deserved it for all he had done, but… the Maeglin Fingon and Maitimo have now is not the Maeglin you despise. At the moment he arrived back to the Halls of Mandos, Lord Námo and Lord Irmo erased his soul, leaving it as blank as a new-born babe, and gave him to them once they rehoused him. I confirmed the history myself after they told me   
that.”

“It´s still the same soul, the same person. He is the rat that betrayed us and killed so many…”

“Tell me, Glorfindel, do you have faith in the Valar?” asked the peredhel. Of course he did, the captain wanted to say, but they could also commit mistakes. “Then could you find some vengeance in the fact that the Maeglin that did that you and your people, who caused your dead, is as dead as no elf before has been? So dead that he will never come back?”

“Elrond…”

“I´m not stopping you, my friend, but I beg you to consider your actions” the other lifted himself from the ground. “Please, think before you do something. The child you saw that night was just that, an innocent babe. He will die a terrible death if you say a word to Turúkano. Do you really want that in your conscience?”

“I…”

“You also know what will happen if you tell him” Glorfindel nodded, already picturing the bloody ground and corpses this kinslaying would leave behind. And the Doom the Valar will surely put on them after it happened. “Think carefully, my friend, our destinies could be in your hands now.”

Elrond left him to think. As soon as he was alone, all Laurefindil wanted was to run to Turgon and to Mandos with all else, but then he pictured the face of the baby he saw that night. No recognition, no malice, only… pure innocence, as any babe. Did he really wanted to do something like that? To carry the death of an innocent babe in his conscience? And not only that, but of a whole kinslaying, because the Feanorians would surely protect the child. He stared at the stars, wondering what to do. Maeglin deserved it, but… if the Maeglin he knew and hate was really… erased… did this babe deserve it? What to do, what to do… He knew decisions in live could be hard, why was so much to take this one? Blood or no blood? Revenge or let go? He need to decide something…

-Tol Eressëa-

“I´m back… and I didn´t tell Turgon” Glorfindel said as he returned to Elrond´s house. The peredhel in question smiled at him, happy that the other took that decision. “But I have petitions in exchange for keeping your secret.”

“Go ahead”

“You will take me to every trip you make to Formenos from now on. I want to keep a close eye on that babe, to make sure the Maeglin I knew is really erased and will never come back. If I even got a sniffle that he is, then…” the golden elf breathed in. “Only one victim, maybe two if I´m not fast enough to dodge Maedhros, but no more. As bloodless as a kinslaying can be.” He crossed his arms. “Take it or leave it”

“Your terms are a big extreme, but considering that it would be very easy for you to get the information to Turgon…” the peredhel made a show of being backed into a corner. “Deal”

“Good” Glorfindel said, yawning a bit. Oh, boy, he was so tired. “Ah, and by the way, never force me again to go to one of those reunions of hell. I might blabber out something with all the wine we are forced to ingest there.”

“I didn´t know you can use blackmail” the peredhel talked, smiling. “Great, next time I will send you to Valimar on vacations!”

Glorfindel groaned. Will he never be rid of this? He didn´t need some blasted vacations.


	9. Chapter 9

“Ulmo´s day in Formenos?” Glorfindel asked when Elrond and Celebrian informed him that he was going to accompany them to the festivities. This surprised him as, of all the people in Aman, he thought the kinslayers would be the least inclined to celebrate the Valar, but apparently he was wrong. “Do they really have that?”

“Of course, all the cities do” the peredhel answered, finishing braiding his hair in the traditional noldor style. “And you know it´s more about the free day, paties and showing off than the Valar in themselves.”

“The Vanyar wouldn´t agree with you”

“The Vanyar are a bunch of prudes” Celebrian said, entering the room with a travel dress reminiscent of the ones Galadriel would wear. “Or that´s what mother said when her great grandmother invited her to spend Tarnin Austa in Valimar.”

“Have you ever been there for a festivity?” asked Laurefindil, who remembered very well the times he had to spend with his Amil in the place. She was a vanyar, a handmaiden to Queen Indis, who married a noldor lord when she moved to Tirion to serve her mistress. Less than need to say she was pious enough to return to her homeland every year for the most important religious festivities. 

“Once, when I couldn´t escape King Ingwë” she shook her head. “Really, I couldn´t believe they spend so many hours praying.”

“Great that we aren´t going there, then” the captain sighed, getting up from his seat. He couldn´t say he was comfortable with becoming a guest of Fëanor for a few days, but he didn´t have a choice. Not if he wanted to keep an eye on Maeglin. 

Once everything was set and ready, at least according to Erestor, the lord of the House and his family bid goodbye to the household that was staying and got into a ship. They sailed to the island of the kinslayers. The day was as great as only a Valinor one could be and the wind was blowing hard, so their ship sailed faster than usual. It was as if the Valar themselves wanted them to get there quickly.

“We are here” Erestor announced when they reached the doors of Formenos. “Could you be trusted to behave yourself while you are in the city?”

“Don´t worry about me, I promised not to ruin this for Elrond” the warrior answered.

“Good, because you are going to be a guest of Lord Maedhros.”

“What?!” he asked, jumping from his seat. “I thought you said you booked us members of the guard rooms in an hotel!! You never said any of us were going to be staying with a Feanorian, let alone THAT Feanorian.”

“You demanded to be able to keep an eye on the little lord at any moment of the day, captain, remember that.”

“I wasn´t meaning that literally, an inn close to Maedhros and Fingon´s house would have been enough for me” the golden haired man crossed his arms. That he had to stay under the same roof as that rat and his two kinslaying protectors… well, at least he would be able to keep them in line. “Is there something else I have to know about?”

“Yes, Lords Elladan and Elrohir petitioned to stay with them too”

“I thought they loved grandfather Maglor”

“And they do, but he plays at strange hours in the night and they don´t want to put up with that. They have a sensitive ear, do you know?”

“All elves do” Glorfindel rolled his eyes, wondering how Elrond himself stood Maglor. Or Maedhros, now that he thought about it. Perhaps the attachment he had with them made him deaf to the composing in the middle of the night and the adopting a mass murderer turned baby things. “So… how are festivities in Formenos?”

“Oh, you should see them”

Yes, he should. Everybody should. The city was beautiful when arranged for festivities. There were colourful silks hanging from different houses and all the statues have been cleaned and decorated with gold, silver or fabric. Feanorian stars could be seen in the patterns of all the embroidery. The most adorned were the mansions, displaying many new ornaments. Specially the ones belonging to the sons of the Lord of the place. 

“Welcome” Maitimo greeted Elrond with a hug, smiling. Fingon was the next, having been standing by his side, surprisingly Maeglin free. “Hope your trip here has been an easy one. Tell me, has something of importance happened in the world since the last time you came?”

“Everything has been the same, don´t worry” the peredhel answered. “High King Arafinwë sends his regards to your family, as does Crown Prince Findárato…”

“You better don´t mention that to my father, he is still a little bit sensitive regarding his half-siblings” he then threw Fingon a look, who was glaring at Glorfindel. “And… uncle Nolofinwë?” he finally asked, hoping to give his husband a surprise. “I know he lives on Turúkanno´s city now. Does he send some words for Findékano?”

“No. I haven´t heard from him or any member of his family except for the Lady Anairë. She isn´t able to come for now, but sends her regards and a promise to visit the next weekend. The lady also said that she is eager to see her grandson.”

“I see” Nelyo tried not to think about his in laws anymore. Frankly, he couldn´t even fathom why they ostracized Finno so much for being gay. Or maybe it was not because of that, but they reproved of his decision of a live partner. And even then, he couldn´t understand, Finno was… he was great!! He has always been a good older brother, a great playing partner when his siblings were elflings and even greater adviser when they grew up. He and Turgon used to be so close… “I didn´t know what uncle Nolo is thinking. Or Turgon…”

“Atya, I´m sad to give you this news, but Turgon is a prude. And stuck in the old ways. He wouldn´t accept someone with different ideas if he offered to solve all his troubles.” He threw Fingon a look. He was for now distracted with the guests, but surely won´t be for long. “We should talk about this in private.”

“Then we will wait until after the festival” Maedhros patted his shoulder, letting everybody enter his house. There the twins run directly into the baby´s room.

“Hello, hello, little cousin” Elladan said, pulling Maeglin into his arms and quickly flinging him into the air. The babe laughed in delight, making grabby motions with his hands. “woow, you have gotten enormous since the last time I have seen you.”

“Ella!! Ella!!” he screamed, making Glorfindel look at him in confusion. It has been months since he saw the mole last time, but he was sure that then he was not articulating words yet. Was it normal for an elfling to start talking at that age? Wasn´t it too soon? Elrohir approached that moment, tickling him. “Ro! Ro!!”

“What the…”

“Impressive, no?” Maedhros appeared then in the doorstep, watching his grandsons and son with each other. The twins have taken to Maeglin as if he had been born in their house. They loved to take him to the park to play or to babysit for them… it was great. “He began like a month ago, with words like atto or atya… I think he learned that last one from Elrond. He is also walking by now, but not very well.”

“He is learning quickly”

“Yes, he is” the redhead smiled sweetly. Laurefindil didn´t know he could make such an expression. “He has always been a smart boy, no?”

“In Gondolin, he was. Very smart” the blonde finally answered, remembering the young Prince from his first live. “But he was also very reclusive. I know it´s too early to know, but… that apparently has changed” the golden elf shrugged. “Maybe Námo gave him sociability before handing him over to you?”

“I don´t think even him could so something like that”

“I won´t be so sure” Glorfindel said, but even he knew that it was probably not the case. Aredhel was his friend and he loved her very much, but… he couldn´t say very good things about her as a mother. Specially after the Finduilas incident… and some more. She simply wasn´t interested in children.

“Dareada” Elladan approached Maedhros with the baby still in his arms. By his side, Elrohir bounced a ribbon in front of the little thing´s face to keep him distracted from his brother´s tresses. It was working, because the baby couldn´t take his eyes off of him. “Can we take little Maeglin out with us?”

“Boys, you have to get ready for the party. Isn´t that going to take too much time?” the redhead said, half serious, half joking.

“We promise to get back in time to change” Elrohir added, putting on his best adorable face. Something that wouldn´t work without the aid of the elfling, who was still in the age to be adorable. 

“Okay, okay, you can go” the Feanorian finally conceded. “But you have to be here on time” he reminded the twins.   
“And stay away from the horses!! You know what happened last time Tyelko babysat for us, I don´t want a rechapter!!”

“Wait, you left your baby in CELEGORM´s hands?!!” Glorfindel was surprised. He knew that the couple left their kid with Nelyo´s family, but the redhead´s blond brother was going a step too far. “Please tell me that I heard wrong and you were saying Tyelpe or something like that”

“I wish” Maedhros answered, rolling his eyes. “But that day was tax day, so Caranthir was busy, Maglor in the conservatory, my father had Tyelpe and Curufin doing long shifts, so I couldn´t ask that of them; mother was also busy and leaving him with the Ambarussa would have been the same. We have to help to maintain order, so… that only left Tyelkormo.”

“And why wasn´t he helping maintain order?”

“The last time my parents gave him some sort of responsibility was back in the age of the Trees and now I know why” the redhead rolled his eyes. “Dammit, it was almost as bad as leaving a baby with Aredhel, if stories are true. He strapped him to his chest and went hunting with him there. The poor thing was crying when he was returned to us and we all vowed never to leave a child in Turko´s care ever again.”

“I can see Aredhel doing something like that, so probably it´s the best idea” Glorfindel said. “Hope it didn´t reawaken some traumas of the past…”

“Traumas? What are you talking about?”

“I don´t know if I should mention it, but… Maeglin once told me that Princess Aredhel used to strap him to her chest to take him on hunts before he was old enough to take care of himself. He said that his mother told him that he used to wail like crazy when she did that, but he wasn´t dirty or hungry, so she learned to ignore him.”

“Now I understand why it took us six hours to calm him down after Tyelkormo´s ride through the forest.”

-A few hours later-

“It´s so beautiful” Glorfindel commented, strolling through the streets with the rest of his guards. He knew they were going to go to a party, but… Elrond didn´t mention that the whole street was the party. Everywhere he went, music could be heard and people were chatting, drinking or dancing. Some couples were even kissing in the open, something that would be scandalous in Tirion or New Gondolin.

“Prince Fëanáro makes sure the festivities are to the enjoyment of everyone in his domains” Erestor explained as he returned from purchasing a sweet. (He had a sweet tooth) “Anyway, we should head for the palace. The plaza around it is the best place in the island to see the fireworks.”

“Fireworks?”

“A new use my father found for an old idea” a cheerful voice sounded near him. The two turned around and saw Celegorm himself approaching them, a jar of mead on his hands. “What? Didn´t you expect to find me here?”

“Not where Lord Maedhros could see you. He is still angry at you for taking Maeglin to a hunting trip before he is old enough to talk.” 

“Nelyo? He wouldn´t scream at me in public” the blond shrugged it off. “And it´s not my fault the little tyke is afraid of horse ridding. In fact, I think Nelyo and Finno should work on that before he is old enough to be invited to an event like that”

“And you surely should know what is appropriate for children that age, considering you have three younger siblings” Celegorm just rolled his eyes. “Aredhel used to do the same to him in his first life, it left a trauma, you know?”

“Ah, Irissë, dear cousin Irissë” the Feanorion said, putting a face. “It surprised me a lot when word got to me that she was a mother. If I remember well, it was in the middle of the Nirnaeth… yes, it was! I always wondered why she ended bearing a child…”

“Why?” Erestor continued with the conversation.

“Oh, nothing, it´s just that… we used to be best friends growing up in Tirion. We chatted a lot. Not much about the future, but… we had the same desires. We wanted to hunt, run free through the forests, chasing after animals and having casual partners. None of us desired parenthood one bit” he sighed. “Being the fun uncle or aunt? Oh, yeah. The parent? No, too much work and less freedom.”

“You sound so mature when you say it that way” Glorfindel opened his mouth for the first time in the whole conversation. “About as mature as her.”

“Well, we are very similar. The two of us never had a hurry for growing up, we have millennia ahead!!” he threw his hands in the air. “I think she might beat me in being immature, I… have a usual partner. Lately.”

“Good for you, when is your wedding?”

“Most likely never, but it´s okay for me. As I said, I don´t want responsibilities or children. That´s why my dear brothers are for” he smiled widely before turning around. “You should catch up with your friends in the plaza now, the fireworks are about to start. Elrond and his family are surely there already, I passed them on my way to get here.”

“Everybody is talking about those bloody things. What are fireworks anyway?”

“You will see”

The silverly blonde took them to the bloody plaza, where a multitude was indeed congregating. The Feanorions mixed themselves easily with them, despite their obvious aristocratic features. Glorfindel turned around a few times and if it was not Maedhros and Fingon talking with Elrond and his family, it was Caranthir giving financial advice somewhere or Curufin laughing with Celebrimbor and a bunch of other smiths. Then Fëanor arrived too, giving a short speech before the fireworks really start.

“Woow, I have never seen something like this before” Laurefindil commented in true amazement, seeing the lights illuminate the night sky, creating colourful flowers of the same. Then some of them began to make forms too. And finally, before his eyes, the sky was lit by red fireworks forming the star of Fëanor, making the people cheer loudly. But the golden warrior didn´t have the same reaction. “Isn´t that going to cause some trouble?”

“What?” Erestor, who has been too busy cheering, turned to his company. “No, why would you think that?”

“I bet that thing was visible from Tirion or Gondolin. Don´t you think someone could take offence?”

“For that? No”

“Are you absolutely sure?”

“Glorfindel, they are just fireworks, who could take offense for that? Besides, it´s clearly from Formenos. Everybody expect to find those stars in Formenos.”

“Not on the sky” the elf answered, hoping that he was not right.

But he was right. From a balcony several kilometres away, Turgon gritted his teeth with strength, looking at the spectacle that was ruining several months of planation from his part. His Ulmo´s day grand ball has been going so well, with couples dancing around, vals and classic noldorin music playing… until the first explosion could be heard and all his guests escaped to see the fireworks. Ohhhhs and Awwwws could be heard around in admiration, making fury spark in his eyes. 

“Atar…” his precious daughter approached him, trying to calm him down. Elenwë, who knew when her husband was in a murderous mood, stayed in her place. She would deal with him in two or three days.

“Idril, honey, hand me my cloak” he ordered his daughter, who turned around to comply. Or at least order Tuor to comply. “I have to get to Formenos”

“Turúkano…”

“No, Ammë, this has gone too far” the man pushed Anairë gently out of his way. “Those bloody kinslayers ruined my party, now they are going to pay for what they did.”

“Yonya, be reasonable” the elf lady said, attempting to ignore the throb in her head. She knew Turúkano´s ego could be a problem sometimes, but this was going to far. Did he really have to pick up a fight over a boring party? Because his party was the most boring thing she had to go in her life. “It´s your uncle and his cousins you are talking about.”

“Half-uncle and cousins” he clarified, straightening his cloak. “Who lost the right to call themselves our family members long ago.”

“They are also Finno´s in laws, you know. They are double times family now.”

“Then Finno is the one who is going to have to answer now!!” the king of Gondolin start to scream. “I´m going there to demand that he keeps those monsters in control or… I´m going to take some measures he is not going to like.”

“Turúkano, please, don´t cause another war” the woman tried exasperated, but her son abandoned the place anyway and make for the boats.

“What did I miss?” Fingolfin asked, returning from a spice induced bathroom trip.

“Your son is going to pick up a fight with your half-brother” 

“WHAT?!” the elf prince´s eyes went wider than saucers. His wife opened her mouth to explain, but yelling interrupted her.

“HEY!! HOW DOES THIS WORKS?!!!” ah, of course, Turúkano didn´t know the difference between a sail and a paddle. A wonder he was the grandfather of a famous Mariner. 

“I will go” Tuor said after everybody released a sigh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like it. Get ready for the confrontation next chapter. Review!!


	10. Chapter 10

“Alright, alright, I´m going!!” Fingon said, tired of all the doorbell ringing. Why had his father-in-law invented such an obnoxious thing? It was a pain so early in the morning!! He opened the door without even looking into the peeping hole, revealing the last person besides his father he wanted to see there. He tried to close the door on the elf´s face, but said entity blocked the way with half of his body. 

“Is that a way to receive your brother in your home?” Turgon said, entering without even being invited. “I knew that living with the kinslayers you wouldn´t need your manners, but to completely forget about them in such a short time…”

“Hello, Turno, how is the family? And didn´t you say in your last letter that would rather dye your own hair purple than seeing me again now that I´m bonded to a murderer?”

“Under normal circumstances, that would be the case, but considering last Ulmo´s day… I thought that it would be better to have a chat with the only reasonable person in this entire island.”

“I´m not the only reasonable…”

“Please, they all followed the Feanorians. I think that´s all you need to discharge them as reasonable” the prick continued walking towards his living room, where he sat down as if he owned the place. They stayed for a few seconds in silence until Turgon finally lost his patience again. “Aren´t your servants going to serve breakfast? It´s almost…”

“It´s too early for even you and, if you haven´t noticed, Maitimo hasn´t woken up yet” Fingon said, glaring at his brother. 

“How rude of him sleeping in the middle of a visit. Didn´t his parents taught him manners?” his older sibling was about to knock some manners into his head, but he continued talking before he could. “Well, better this way. For now, his lack of manners in beneficial.”

“To who? The rude little brat that just invaded my privacy to insult me?” there was a tense silence between them as they glared at each other. “What have you really came to, Turúkano?”

“To talk to you, as I said. About those kinslayers too” the other said with a petulant tone. “But maybe I should wait until you have remembered the basis of what atar and ammë taught us in your guest room…”

“No” he blocked the elf´s way upstairs with a hurry, something especially rude. He didn´t want to give his brother more ammunition against him, but if Turno ever saw Maeglin, all Angband would break loose. “Just… give me a second, okay? I will be right back downstairs in a moment to have breakfast with you.”

“Why do you need to go upstairs and without me?”

“Do I need an excuse to do something in my own house?”

“No, but it sounds fishy, considering the reputation of everyone in this place.”

“It´s not fishy, I simply want to warn Maitimo you are here, so he wouldn´t go down or at least presentable while you are here. I don´t want a repeat of when Ammë´s visit here” or Glorfindel´s, Findékano thought. “So if you excuse me”

“I don´t think that´s really necessary”

“With the sleeping robes he was wearing yesterday? Oh, it´s absolutely necessary for all of our sakes.”

“I wouldn´t be the first time I see his sleeping robes.”

“Yes, but not the ones he started to use after our marriage” Finno said, taking advantage of the door opening and praying that Maedhros never heard of this. “Because, let me tell you, we have a very active sex life. And if you still don´t believe that I should warn him, you should ask Thorondor about our flee from Angband. He has always loved that history…”

“You disgust me” Turgon looked about to vomit. “Fine, you up there, tell him to stay there, change or whatever” Fingon nodded, happy that his brother was such a homophobe for the first time in his life. It was so easy to get rid of him that it was laughable. “And don´t you dare to have a round with him now!! I indeed know you are loud!!”

“I wouldn´t dare” the older mussed to himself, going upstairs as fast as he could. He finally reached the room, where Maedhros lied sprawled in the bed, the covers still over his body. The raven gently tapped his shoulder and shook him until he opened his eyes. 

“Finno, what…”

“Shhh” the other answered before he could raise his voice again. “I don´t want to bear bad news so early in the morning, but Turúkano just decided to show his ugly mug here. And by here, I mean our living room.”

“Sh…” he covered his mouth with his hand. Maeglin was still asleep, but if he raised his voice enough, he might wake up and then they will have to explain to Turgon why there was a baby in their house. And why did he look like his disowned nephew. “Couldn´t you get rid of him?”

“It´s not so easy, so… get Maeglin to your parents or brothers as fast as you can and come back before he annoys me enough for me to throw him out. Or worse, to kinslay.”

“Understood” Fingon got out of the room after stealing him a quick kiss, grabbing his golden ribbons on the way out. They were like boost for his confidence, something he was going to need a lot pretty soon. 

The redhead, for his part, dressed as fast as he could and went to the baby´s room. He locked it up from the inside before exiting through the window. This one noticed the uncomfortableness of his new bed, waking up. His eyes filled with tears despite his atya´s presence, wanting to return to his warm comfortable crib, and prepared to release a wail, but a finger stuck itself in his mouth. It stopped him. Maedhros sighed in relief, even if Fingon was going to kill him later. They have been trying to get Maeglin out of his chewing random things and now he was letting the kid chew him.

“You better enjoy this while it lasts” he told the child, speeding up to his closest available brother. And, as Maglor was probably still out cold in his bed, Celegorm was hunting and a definitely no-no, Caranthir wouldn´t even open his door… “Curufinwë Atarinkë, open this door!!”

“Wha…” a half sleep Tyelpe suddenly found himself with an armful of toddler. 

“Turgon is here and terrorizing the house” explained Maitimo before rushing to his own home to save his husband. And what a need he had to save Fingon, because that family fight was so loud that it was going to wake up the whole collective of hungover elves of Formenos.   
He quickly escalated one of the walls towards his rooms and threw his bathrobe over his clothes, grabbed his sword and went down just in time to hear the last scream the prude of Gondolin sent against his husband.

“I´m not demanding much, aren´t I?! Just that you keep those psychopaths you call your in-laws under control, nothing more!! Are telling me that you are incapable of doing something as simple as that?!”

“You are just throwing a temper tantrum because the people liked those fireworks better than your high-class ball” spat Finno, doing his best to keep control of his emotions and not hit his brother. “Guess what, Turúkano? Your parties suck!! So much that people are actually glad when they finish!!”

“You little, disgusting pervert…”

“Call me pervert all you like, little brother, it won´t make me ashamed of my feelings for Nelyo. I´m over whatever you could tell me” he said, completely serious. “Now, I believe you have overstayed your welcome, so you better go out and…”

“OH, this isn´t over yet” Turgon advanced on his older brother and grabbed him rather painfully.   
“Now listen to me, Findékano. You will do as I say and make sure those kinslayers stay in the mud they should have never crawled out of or I will…”

“I won´t let you manhandle me in my own home!!”

“Me either” Maedhros stepped in that moment, sword in hand and pointing at his brother-in-law.   
“I won´t let you threaten my husband in front of me.”

“Oh, couldn´t you have stayed upstairs waiting to be fucked like the bitch in heat you are?”

“The only one being a bitch here is you, Turúkano” the redhead continued pointing at him. “Perhaps it is because you envy our enjoyment of each other´s body. Is it not?” Turgon´s face was priceless. “What? Elenwë got tired of being crushed under your ego´s weight? Maybe if your stiff face accepted another position, you wouldn´t have to come bitching here.”

“You son of a…”

“One more thing, cousin, I beg you” the redhead said, putting the tip of the sword on the other´s neck. “Just say one more thing.”

“You wouldn´t dare” Turgon glared at him. “the Valar would know and you would be send to the Void along with…”

“I have done this before, I will do it again gladly for Findékano. I would even go to the Void for Findékano… not that you would know how something like that feels” his cousin showed him his teeth. “And, considering the circumstances, I think the Valar would understand.”

“You are going to be thrown to the Void for…”

“Of course not, he is not” Fingon walked towards his husband, grabbing the sword from his hands. He returned the point right to his brother´s neck. “Go now, Turúkano, I don´t want to commit kinslay, but I will if you don´t say a word more and leave.”

“This isn´t over… brother” the king of Gondolin kept his head high as he walked to the door, got out of the house and slammed it down shut. Findékano sighed, finally returning the sword.

“He is a nuisance” Maedhros commented as he sheathed the weapon.

“More like a prick, but you caught it” he shook his head. “Valar, wonder what went into him now? I mean, a temper tantrum like this just because your father had some fireworks in our party? Should get over it.”

“Couldn´t be…” a hand was put in the redhead´s lips. 

“Don´t provoke Turúkano. And don´t underestimate him either, he is great holding grudges” he rolled his eyes. “You never asked yourself why he left our family in Middle Earth to go build Gondolin?”

“For security measures?”

“More like for what we were doing in your room while you were recovering from Angband. Don’t worry, by the way, he was in negation until…”

“Oh, Eru Almighty” Maitimo now was pale as a sheet. “Please tell me he didn´t overheard us?”

“Well, considering that at least thirty of my knights, half of your brothers and the two of mine that were still alive overheard us… come on, you knew we were shit at keeping secrets when all of them told you they already knew about our affair” the other put his head in his hands, shaking it. “Let´s talk about something else, okay? Like how all my siblings are prudes.”

“All of them?”

“Hummm, let me check. Irissë abandoned her own child to destiny probably worse than death, Turno is probably planning to turn this place into a right prison for us and Arko hasn´t talked to me since his pretty vanya sweetheart told him homosexuals were abominations…”

“Okay, they are prudes” he said. “Not as much as your father, but…” 

“Oh, that´s the king of prudes” Fingon smiled. “Okay, another theme. Like how are we going to spend this morning alone while your brother has Maeglin.” 

“I like it better”

-That afternoon-

Fingon heard the doorbell ring again and sighed. Maedhros has just gone out to pick Maeglin from Curufin (or at least save his brother and nephew from one of the toddler´s temper tantrums), so he was alone again. He lifted himself from the couch, swearing to himself that if it was Turgon again…

“Hello, brother” Arákano said with a weak smile when he opened his door. Fingon was surprised to see him there, as they have not talked in a couple of decades. “May I come in?”

“Sure, why not?” he retired a bit, giving Argon full entrance to his home. His brother took the invitation and got in. 

Once they were sitting in his living room, silence descended over them. Fingon didn´t know what to say, which was a novelty, as it has always been easier for him to talk with his youngest sibling. Or it was, before his beautiful vanya girl came into the picture. After she started to sputter homophobic things in his ears, Argon began to shun him. That lead to a few decades of silence between the brothers that Findékano sincerely wished did not exist. Well, he couldn´t turn back time, but he could star mending. Right now.

“How have you…”

“Fine” Argon answered even before he finished his line. “More than fine, actually. I´m… ehhhh… I´m going to get married in a few months.”

“Oh, that´s great!! Congratulations!!” Finno said, really happy for his brother despite the doubts his mother had about his fiancé. “So… when is the wedding? Do you need my help with anything? Telperinquar doesn´t make rings anymore, but Curufin is still in the business and I have to say his work…”

“We already commissioned the rings, thank you” the taller elf said, rubbing his hands together.   
“Listen, Finno, I… I came here to invite you to my wedding” he handed him a card, making his brother´s heart swell with happiness. His relationship with Arákano wasn´t as broken as he thought after all. “And, as Turúkano has already visited you today, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to give you the invitation.”

“There was not a bad time for such joyous news” the oldest assured him. “So… when is the big day going to be? I have to buy you a wedding gift and I hope Caranthir would be up to make me and Nelyo some new robes…”

“Ahhhh, in fact, the invitation is for you, not for your… partner” Findékano raised an eyebrow at the last word. Hasn´t his brother already swallowed that? He meant, Argon didn´t have anything against him when he first came out of the closet. “It still has a plus one, but it´s for some girl…”

“What?”

“Look, I don´t want to insult you or your way of living… but you know it´s wrong” wrong, eh? “You have been the talk of the court in Tirion so much time that it´s a miracle that the news of your deviant behaviour didn´t reach Valimar and my future in laws. It will surely damage my marriage if you appear there with him by the arm…”

“So you say I shouldn´t bring my HUSBAND to your wedding just because your fiancé and her family are a bunch of homophobes?”

“That´s not what I said, I´m only asking you to do what´s best for our family and hide your perversions from the public eye” Argon glared at him. “If you appear there with a girl on arm, even if she is a kinslayer, everyone will soon forget about…”

“If I remember it correctly” Finno started, breathing deeply to stop himself from throwing his brother from his house. “when I invited you to MY wedding, I never put a veto on who you can bring.”

“That was different…”

“In what? I was marrying the love of my life, just like you”

“You were marrying a MAN!! Which is an abomination!!” Argon screamed, hurting Fingon more than he knew. “Look, I´m not here to fight. I just want my whole family in my wedding day, acting as we should.”

“Yes, because it´s such a united family, no?”

“You have the guilt of that, Findékano. If you have just corrected yourself…”

“It´s not something you can simply correct, you know? It´s just who I am” he raised himself from the couch. “I don´t care what you, Turúkano or even father refuse to accept, I am gay, married to a man who is also the love of my live and I refuse to feel ashamed or hide that. No matter what you think I should do” he walked towards the door. “I think you have overstayed your welcome.”

“Findékano, Finno, be reasonable” Argon tried for the last time. “The vanya will never accept a kinslayer and a pervert in their midst, nor other elves. I´m just trying to help…”

“I´m a kinslayer too” he said, very cold. “And if I can´t go to your wedding with Nelyo, then I refuse to go.”

“Return me the invitation then” Arákano answered equally cold. “We will see each…”

“Goodbye, brother” Fingon slammed the door on his sibling´s face. Then walked to the living room and started to cry. That´s how Maedhros and Maeglin found him when they arrived.

“What happened?” the redhead asked, leaving the toddler on the floor and taking his husband in his arms. The child also felt the uncomfortableness of his parents, toddling to them and embracing Finno´s legs. “Please, sweetheart…”

“Nelyo… Nelyo, Argon was here…” Maitimo frowned. He knew his in laws were trouble, but this…   
“He… he wanted to…”

“Shhhh, it´s okay, tell me” the other male explained, patting his child´s head all the time to keep himself calm. The redhead listened carefully and… “Oh, Finno” he moved to take him more into his arms. “don´t cry, shush. You already knew brothers can be prudes”

“You are talking from experience?”

“Yes” he nodded. “You don´t know the things Celegorm and Curufin did, they got me more headaches than anything else! And let´s not talk about Ambarussar…”

“But they never ostracised you” Fingon finally said. “They never… never call you names and… and refused to accept you for yourself… or completely forget you when they didn´t need you” he grabbed Maeglin to hug him deeply. The elfling just stayed quiet, returning the gesture. “Your family accepted you, Nelyo, but mine… mine hasn´t. They… just refuse…”

“Oh, Finno” the three were now together in an embrace. 

That´s how Fëanor and Nerdanel found them when they arrived for lunch. The nís quickly sensed something was wrong, so she took the now wringing toddler from them, noticing that both of them have been crying. And she could guess exactly why they have been doing so. Nolofinwë, Turúkano, Arákano, Irissë… pick a name. Her husband apparently was picking up that too, because barely contained anger was noticeable in his face.

“What happened?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, more and more family members are making apparitions. At least Turgon didn´t see Maeglin, because he was going to throw   
> a right fit if he saw him. Who is going to be the next? Review!!


	11. Chapter 11

Celegorm was walking through the streets of Formenos immediately after the fireworks, a little bit drunker than he would have liked, in search of a specific someone. They could reunite everywhere, but… the forest was a favourite place of theirs. In absence of that, they always had the big garden of his own mansion, but first he had to find him. Or at least that was what he was trying to do to, when he was attacked. Three elves suddenly jumped him, pressing him to a wall while they tied his hands on his back.

“Dammit, let me…” a gag muffled his yells before someone could notice him.

“Hold him back, strong. Don´t let him go or we are all dead” the leader apparent of the tiny group said, holding the blonde´s right arm as his other companion did the same with the other. The third messily tried to tie the struggling Feanorion as tight as he could.

“Ready” the third finally declared, getting away. 

“I have to concede it, Pelchanar, we really managed to catch one with your plan” the second talked, still holding the Fair one to keep him in place while the third grabbed another rope. “He is going to make us very rich.”

“Elu Thingol will surely reward us handsomely for giving him the one that slew his beloved grandson. He had always wanted to… pay them with their own coin”

The Son of Fëanor glared at them. They were clearly Noldor, because of their black manes and grey eyes… and the way they spoke quenya. They surely hasn´t put a foot in Middle Earth, they wouldn´t be talking like that if they did. And Sindar would first cut their own arm than speak quenya. But aside from that, he hasn´t seen them before, not even in informal gatherings he tended to attend, so they were not from Formenos. So what they were doing here? Except for attracting the wrath of the House of Fëanor on them and making a show of their greed.

“We should sedate him” the mousy third member of their party said, fearfully. 

“Come on, Uilossion, he is immobilized. What could he do now?”

“I don´t know, but…” the elf trembled a bit. Celegorm rolled his eyes, what was such a scaredy cat child doing here between the kinslayers? Surely not the best of the ideas. “he is a Feanorioan, he must be… strong or resourceful or… to kinslay…”

“See what we get for bringing your little brother, Torthion?” the leader, Pelchanar, said to his second, who try to throw a kicking Tyelkormo over his shoulder. No use. “We should have left him home, where he could hang from your mother´s skirts.”

“At least he should though up now that he will gain fame” the nér answered, crossing his arms. “Come on, Uili, tie his legs so we can get out of here. I don´t want to know what might happen to us if someone finds us…”

He didn´t get to finish that sentence, because suddenly a flash of silver illuminated the alley they were in. in a second, they were all on the floor, even the silverly blond, who lifted his eyes to see a figure in the darkness. It was a tall man with an unnatural wildness about him. His silver hair blew around his frame, untamed, various trophies of hunting game hanging from it. The face was hidden by the darkness, only his alit yellow eyes visible.

“I see you still get into trouble by yourself” the Vala Oromë said, gently taking a strand of hair away from Celegorm´s face. “You should be more careful”

“Hummmmmm…” the gagged elf said, clearly wanting to get the gag out of his mouth.

“How about you try by yourself, little hunter?” the Ainur asked, playfulness in his eyes. “Before your father´s men find out, I have to add, because if not there might be an explosion worth the First Age, no?”

“HUMMMM!!!!”

“Better hurry, no?”

Celegorm seethed. If there was a thing he didn´t like about Oromë, his on and off lover since the Age of the Trees, was his playfulness. It was… well… now that he thought about it, he liked that very much. It was great in bed… or in the forest or garden floor… but in situations as this one it didn´t really sound so appalling. Specially when he was tied up surrounded by enemies, even if those enemies have received a tremendous blow to the head from a Vala and won´t wake up until next week, but… the ropes were scalding him and he knew that his parents were going to freak up. And nothing could stop Fëanor when something got into his head, especially when it concerned his children´s safety…

“Prince Turkafinwë!!!” the blond grunted when one of his father´s guards found him, still bound and surrounded. “Prince Turkafinwë, what happened? And what are those elves doing around you?” the nér said while unbinding him. Then he understood the situation. “This is outrageous!! We need to tell Prince Fëanáro immediately.”

“No, it doesn´t…”

“I insist!! We must tell them if this threatens your safety!!”

Celegorm rolled his eyes as he was practically dragged by the guard and the guards that came to help after he called for reinforcements. He soon ended up in the principal castle of Formenos, where his mother fussed over him and his father ragged over the incident. Surprisingly, his brother Caranthir was there already, his two children in his arms. Not many outside the immediate family knew of them, this secret son and daughter he had with the edain Haleth… his wife. His father wanted to proclaim to all the winds that he had new grandchildren when he found out, but Moryo was paranoid because of how he lost them back in Middle Earth… they were very young then… and having just gotten them back, he screamed and raged until all thoughts of an announcement was forgotten. To keep Moryo´s peace of mind, Nerdanel said. And the children… let´s just say that the closest thing they had to a playing partner since their arrival to Valinor were Tyelpe and Maeglin.

“What is he doing here?” he asking, remembering the scares times he had seen this particular brother of his outside his own house. Or the finances office of his parent´s castle, the only reason he ever leaves his home. “What happened?”

“There was an attempt on Caranthir´s live tonight” Fëanor answered, holding something tightly in his hands. “Or more likely an attempt to kidnap him. The children saw everything.” He clenched his teeth. “I was told that there was one on yours too. Let me see” Tyelkormo stayed where he was, but the guard that found him advanced and placed something on his hand. The Prince examined one of his attacker´s dagger with the eyes of a smith. “Gondolindrim make, good, but lesser quality than before. You might know what I mean.”

“The others have the same design in their daggers” Nerdanel said. She was a smith too, she had seen the same as her husband in the steel of the weapons.

“Gondolidrim, then. Gondolidrim elves, as Turúkano´s people doesn´t like to trade with strangers” the old kinslayer glared at the offensive thing. “You mentioned that they mentioned something about Elu Thingol, no?”

“Yes, it came in their conversation” Celegorm said, crossing his arms. “They mentioned that he would reward them handsomely for my head.”

“More if you were delivered to him alive” the raven sighed, putting the daggers aside. “I didn´t want to tell you, but my father´s old friend Elwë has put a reward on all of the family´s heads. Even Nel´s, despite her being completely innocent.”

“He blames me for birthing my sons and you know it” the nís sighed. 

“Why didn´t you tell us if you knew?” the blond asked, surprised.

“We didn´t want you to feel trapped in here, but as you never leave the island anymore and are so happy… we thought he was never going to be able to reach you here” the redhead explained. “We informed Maitimo and Makalaurë, of course, but kept it between ourselves otherwise. It was a mistake”

“Yes, a mistake that is not going to be repeated” Fëanor said. “I will order the guard to be in high alert from now on, especially in festivities. And you four should spend the night on our house. I should also call…”

“Ahhhh, I think no.”

“Tyelkormo…”

“Ammë, I´m mature enough to take care of myself and the same goes for my brothers” the blond said. “I will accept the guard accompanying me home tonight if that helps to calm your fears, but I refuse hide even in this situation. I bid you goodnight, ammë, atar.”

“Tyelkormo, wait”

“Leave him, Nel, he is resolved. The guard will take care of him, don´t worry”

Celegorm bowed to his parents and left the castle, followed by a few guards. He walked calmly to his home, closing his door with a strong lock. He also did the same with his curtains, knowing that the guard was going to be there all night, making sure he was save and out of Thingol´s grasp. He didn´t want them to see anything. The blond turned around as soon as his room was in complete darkness, he could see Oromë´s two cat like eyes following him, stalking him like prey. Too bad they couldn´t play their usual games of hunting in this situation… But that doesn´t mean he wasn´t going to make him work for it.

“Catch me if you can” he said, running off to the living room.

He woke up the next day on his bed deliciously sore, his clothes lying around in pieces. It was really late, as he could see by the sun, but he didn´t really mind that. In fact, it didn´t surprise him either, as he was still tired. The stamina of the Valar was not to be underestimated. Oromë has left already, as ever, back to his woods and his wife. And it was okay by him. He would be back when they both got the itch again. Meanwhile, they had their own places and their own sporadical lovers to satisfy them. It was a good arrangement for beings as wild as them.  
Vána didn´t mind either.

“Well, time to start the day” he said, stretching before dressing up in his usual clothes and left for his parent´s house, ready to inform them that he spent an uneventful night after that minor incident on the alley. That should calm them down.

“IT´S PREPOSTEROUS!!” his atar´s enraged voice shaking the walls of stone of the castle made him realise that it wouldn´t be so easy. He didn´t open the door to the room his nostari were currently in, just waited in the antechamber for the tantrum to finish. Something that was not going to happen soon, as more items were thrown around in the place.

“Turúkano and Arákano have a right to visit their brother” Nerdanel tried to calm her husband down. 

“Oh, yes, they have. What they don´t have is the right of INSULTING OUR FIRSTBORN AND HIS SPOUSE IN THEIR OWN HOUSE!! IN MY LAND!! AFTER TURGON´S PEOPLE DARED TO ACT LIKE SELLSWORDS OF ELU THINGOL IN IT!!” Fëanor continued to rage around, destroying things around. “But this is not going to stay like that. I´m going to make them hear me…”

“Fëanáro, please, for the love of the Valar, stop there” the redhead pleaded, terrified of losing her husband again.   
“You can´t go to Thingol´s court and demand something of…”

“Who says I´m going to do that?” the raven asked, grunting. “That prude wouldn´t even hear me before cutting my head off, so there is no use in trying something with him” he sighed. “Arafinwë, on the other hand…”

“Your brother wouldn´t hear you either, not after he expelled us from court.”

“He would, at least, hear me out if I have a good reason. And with this proves, I have enough to make his rage fall on Nolofinwë and Turúkano´s heads” Nerdanel lowered her head, knowing that she lost the debate. “I set out to Tirion in the morning, inform the guard so everything is ready.”

Celegorm didn´t need more words to know that this matter was one that was going to be settled in the court of Tirion, a court they were sadly not longer welcomed. And that enticed it´s own dangers. They had so many enemies there… not all of them, now that he thought about it. He ran towards Maglor´s mansion as soon as he took a decision, banging his fists on the door when he arrived.

“What the…” his sleepy brother answered, but was pushed aside as the blond ran inside, looking for the room that housed Elrond Peredhel.

“Atto, what…” the elf lord got into his view just a few minutes after.

“It´s me, nephew” Turkafinwë grabbed his shoulders. “I need a favour”

-the day after-

“And the next issue on the table is…” the sound of the doors opening to the courtroom were the end of Arafinwë´s peaceful and boring day as the last person he wanted to see barged into his calm life. Fëanor, his oldest brother, his half-brother… what was he doing here? And by Elrond´s side. He turned to Nolofinwë, but he was as surprised as him. His sons too.

“What are you doing here, Fëanáro?” the High King said, trying to sound angry. “You were banished from this court to your lonely island with all your kinslayers…”

“I´m not here as your brother, Arafinwë, but as the lord of Formenos. And all elf lords of the Noldor have a right to seek justice before the High King” Arafinwë was about to curse. He was right. Of course he was. He should have realised sooner that he should never let the Feanorians run to Formenos and install a feud there. 

“If it´s about that issue with Elu Thingol putting a reward on your family´s whole heads, I already proclaimed that whatever noldo that goes for it commits a crime in the eyes of me and that all the lords must do the same…”

“Then why, might I ask, six gondolindrim appeared on Ulmo´s day seeking those rewards? Attacking two of my children, of all the people” he dumped the daggers in front of the blond. “The entirety of guards here can confirm my words, I brought them as witnesses if that is needed.”

Arafinwë´s expression didn´t have a price. He was so surprised that he only managed to turn to Turgon to try and see if he knew something about this. Much to his relieve, his nephew was as surprised as him. That was great. It would be much worse if he knew and consented his subjects´ little endeavour.

“It´s unfortunate to hear that some of our own descended so low as to act like sellswords for the King of Doriath” the blond said, hoping that it was all. “But the crime was committed in Formenos and, as much as it would pain Turúkano and their families, justice must be served in Formenos. You have my permission to do so, if you needed it and no one here would contest it as long as there is no kinslaying.” Finarfin finished, hoping that this example would teach all the people not to give Fëanor an excuse to come to Tirion again. “If that is all…”

“Oh, no, half-brother, it´s everything but the beginning of the issues that brought me here” the High King was ready to scream by then. “Do you happen to know that our dear nephews visited my domain the day after Ulmo´s day?” Arafinwë was without words, as well as Nolofinwë. “No? Then you must ignore that they also insulted Nelyafinwë, my firstborn, and his spouse. In MY OWN LAND.”

“Nolo, did you know?” his brother looked at the king with surprise. He heard that Turgon was going to go to Formenos from his wife, but… he never thought that he was actually going to yell at the Feanorians for something as stupid as the fireworks. And Arákano… what was Arákano doing there? Just visiting Finno? Then why was he insulting Maedhros and Fingon? 

“I… I never thought that they… that Turno would…”

“I see” Finarfin felt as if his head was going to explode. Insulting a lord´s heir and said elf´s spouse in a lords land was a crime punishable by law, by the High King if a complain was presented, so his nephews have actually gave Fëanor a reason to come and complain before the court of Tirion. “Could we just set it as a familiar matter, dear brother, and end this affair with a… heartfelt apology from our nephews?”

“I… I apologize, uncle” Argon said, trying to sound as sincere as he could. Arafinwë´s glare surely helped that cause. A pity it didn´t work on Turgon.

“What are you waiting for, Turúkano? Apologize” the king continued with his glare. “For everything.”

“Why should I?” the other said. “They are a bunch of outlaws and kinslayers, they deserved to be brought to justice, before Thingol or us. And my insult about his deviant heir and…”

“Fëanáro, I see that this matter won´t be solved like a family matter in the case of Turúkano, but you accept Arákano´s apology in the name of your son and the promise that he won´t cross the borders of your lands with those intentions again?”

“I do”

“Then the familial matter is settled” the blond High King stated. “Now, as Turúkano decided that this won´t be settled as an uncle-nephew affair, it should be settled as a dispute of honour between the Lords of Formenos and Gondolin. Now, as the Lord of Gondolin doesn´t deny the offense, I, as the High King, must order him to apologize.”

“WHAT?!”

“Publically…”

“Wait there, uncle…”

“And a weregild of my choosing should be sent to Formenos as compensation for the insult. From the treasuries of Gondolin itself” Arafinwë gave his nephew a final glare, shutting him up. “Now what are you waiting for, my lord, apologize.”

“My lord of Formenos and uncle” Turgon bend looked as if he was a tree, stiff. And his eyes were hateful. “I… deeply… apologize for my insult to your heir and his spouse.”

“As you should, brat” Fëanor smirked, knowing that he had succeeded and shamed Fingolfin´s line except for Findékano. “Arafinwë, I would say it has been a pleasure, but it has not, I will be expecting the trinkets from Turúkano´s mediocrity of a forge.”

“You damn…”

“You will have them” Finarfin answered. “Good day, Fëanáro. Please, remember your banishment and please stay in your island.”

“Absolutely”  
-A few moments later-

“Were you nuts?!!!” the High King berated his nephews in private, something therapeutic after Fëanor´s short visit. 

“I asked you all… no, I ordered you not to give Fëanáro an actual reason to come here and what you do?! Give him an actual reason to file a complaint against the House of Fingolfin in Court!!”

“But, uncle…”

“Nothing of but uncle!!” Finarfin yelled even louder. “You… you better stay away from Formenos from now on. And take a better care of your subjects, Turúkano” he ordered, pointing at the lord of Gondolin. “I warn you, next time you or yours do something like that, you will pay with more than just iron or gold. Now show me your treasury so I can pick what you are sending Formenos”

Turgon seethed in silence, but this was not going to be the end of it. Oh, no, this has just started. And it was no longer about the stupid fireworks, it was an honour quest. No matter how much it takes, he was going to make the Feanorians pay for this humiliation. He swears it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! Hope you liked this chapter. Review!!!


	12. Chapter 12

“Wake up, dear” Fingon´s playful face was the first thing Maedhros saw in the morning, which was not a bad view at all. Especially when it was followed by a tender kiss on his lips. “Don´t you remember what day it is, love?”

“Yes, I do. Today is a special day, no?” they smiled at each other before getting out of bed and quickly made a trip for different rooms. The two then converged in the same one, something in their hands. “Are you ready?” the two of them nodded before the redhead opened the door to a room. “Happy begetting day!!!”

“Woow!! Thank you!!” Maeglin answered, jumping in his bed. Findékano smiled and sat down near the elfling, putting a little cake with six candles under his nose. It was his favourite flavour, so he was eager to sink his little teeth in it. Without even being asked, he blew the candles and make a silent wish. Maedhros chose that moment to sat down by him too. 

“Happy sixth begetting day” the redhead said, passing him the package. His tiny son grabbed it and teared the envelope, revealing a brand new smith´s hammer. A child size hammer. “It´s for when you join your grandfather, uncle and cousin in the forge.”

“Can I?” the child´s face lit up.

“Of course. Tyelpe and Curufin started to learn smiting at your age and, if you want, you can too” the kid started to cheer. “But you have to promise us that you will heard whatever your grandfather tells you and always follow his instructions. Otherwise, there will be no more forge for you until you are legally of age. Understood?”

“Crystal!!” the boy continued, bouncing on his place on the child sized bed Fëanor made when Maeglin finally outgrew his crib. “This is the best begetting day ever!! Thank you, atto, atya” he hugged them. “With this I will become a great smith.”

Fingon and Maedhros smiled at each other, enjoying the close proximity of their child, the warmth of his body. They have gone so far with their little family. All of the things that could have gone wrong (the reward Thingol still have on the Feanorian´s heads, Irissë finding out that they have their child and coming to claim him, another person seeking revenge on Maeglin for his past…) and they were still united. And they were able to raise such a wonderful child…

“He has grown up so much” the raven commented when they exited the room to get dressed and prepare the begetting day party. The children in Formenos were invited, all of them, so it was going to be such a great job. “I remember the day Námo gave him to us. He was barely long enough to fit on my arms.”  
“You are getting awful sentimental now” the redhead cleaned up his own tears, trying to hide them. “If you act like this when he is only six, how are you going to be when he reaches his majority?”

“You are one to talk” his husband pushed him. They laughed together as they reached their room, grabbing the clothes chosen for the occasion. “But now, talking seriously, Maitimo. Do you think it was a good idea to gift him smiting lessons? I mean… he could hurt himself.”

“Finno, we talked about this, it will be good for him. He has the talent, passion…” Maedhros listed, remembering all the times he went to pick toddler Maeglin from his father´s forge sometimes, only to find him staring attentively at the three fabled smiths that worked there from his fence. “He will love it.”

“I know” the Fingolfinian sighed, noticing that he had lost. “Guess I will have to stock the infirmary with burn salves”

“You don´t confide in my father?” the redhead said, half-joking. “I inform you that he managed to get Curufin through his smiting apprenticeship without a single burn, from year six to hundredth. And then my brother did the same with Tyelpe.”

“What an ability” Finno finished accommodating his formal robes, grabbing his golden ribbons from a jewellery box. And some golden ornaments to add on this formal occasion. “Can you do my braids, love? I would do them myself, but you do it better than me.” Maedhros didn´t answer, busy with his own dressing. “Come on, I will do your own too.”

“Of course” he grabbed the ribbons, braiding them into his husband´s hair with an easiness that only practise could give. From time to time he hanged the other ornaments from the tips, styling his hair into a style that he used a lot when he was High King. He then picked up from the jewelry box a circlet and put it on his head as a last detail. “There, done”

“Is this really necessary? It´s a children party” Findékano said, caressing the silverly ornament. It was a wedding gift from Fëanor himself, a true piece of art… or a part of it, as it had a twin that was Nelyo´s. He only wore it on official ceremonies, but never to parties. At least not when little kids would be near. 

“If you don´t want to wear it…”

“And I suppose you don´t want to wear ornaments again on your hair, no?” Fingon grabbed his spouse´s box, opening it. It was full of trinkets Maitimo never used, many of them red or golden, all abandoned and collecting dust. “You need to start adorning yourself sooner than later, Maitimo. Come here.”

“I would prefer to…”

“I said come on” he patted the chair he was vacating. The redhead did as he was told, letting his spouse pass his hands through his silken locks, combing them a bit. “I swear I don´t know what to do with you. I had to give you a three hours tirade to convince you to wear jewellery to our wedding, why so against it?” 

“Never had need of it before… at least not in Middle Earth” he shrugged a bit. “As Lord of Himring and of Amon Ereb I never had the need to wear anything shinny or complicated hairstyle… perhaps it´s just the habit that´s hard to kill, but I started to like my hair as simple as that. Only a ponytail…”

“Well, then I will just have to break you out of that habit. I have nothing against ponytails, but you have to start wearing your hair like the prince you are” he started braiding, putting some ruby and gold ornaments in it. “By the way, did you remember to pick up the cake from the bakery? It has to be here before the party starts.”

“Weren´t you going to do it?” Maedhros said, remembering their conversation last night.

“No, I was going to be in charge of the musicians… or, like I explained yesterday, of waking up Maglor in time for the party. And that he has age-appropiate compositions for children Maeglin´s age instead of his usual, sad ones, The cake was all yours.”

“Okay, okay, everything besides dealing with my half-awake brother. I had enough of that when we were in Amon Ereb” he rolled his eyes. “Wish you luck, my love.”

“You too, because if you drop that thing or something happens to it before it arrived at the party, I will kill you” Findékano said, finishing with his husband´s braids. “This is the first birthday our boy is going to remember for the rest of his live, everything has to be perfect for him.”

“Hey, as long as he got to run around, playing with his friends and stuff his face with sweets, it´s going to be a memorable date” the redhead got up. “Now, I better go get that cake. I don´t want to get killed.”

“Of course not” Finno also got up. “And be careful with that thing!!”

“Yes!!!” Maedhros answered as he exited the room and the house. A few seconds later, Fingon did the same, going to his neighbour’s house. The raven, knowing that Maglor was most probably still asleep, got into mansion and went to the master bedroom to find the musician… only to find him naked in the bed with a very male silver haired elf.

“What the…”

“Finno!!!” the minstrel screamed when he finally woke up, finding his surprised cousin in the entrance of the room. He quickly threw a robe over his naked form and pushed him out of the room. “Couldn´t you have ringed the bell or something like that? It would at least warn me to keep my door closed.”

“I… I didn´t know what to say…” the former High King said, still shocked by the image. “You… you have the same preferences as…”

“No” Maglor answered, looking harshly at him. “It happens that I enjoy company from both men and women alike.”

“You are bisexual?!”

“If you want to put it some way” he rolled his eyes. “My liking for females lowered a lot since my wife left me and I started to have something with Daeron by the end of the Third Age…”

“Wait, you are in a relationship with a sinda lord? Despite what Thingol is doing to your family? Despite the risk?” Makalaurë bit his lip. He knew it was foolish not to end his thing with Daeron after they arrived to Valinor and everything went downwards, but they have been together for such a long time that… love won in the end. Even if they had to hide it. “Woow, you like to take risks.”

“Like you are one to talk” he crossed his arms. “Anyway, you must be here to make sure I´m presentable to play in your baby boy´s begetting day party and that my compositions are appropriate for children that age.”

“If you are so gentle”

“And… if you want to bring your boyfriend to the party…”

“Absolutely not. My father could be pretty tolerant, but he draws the line in remarriage, even if one of them is divorced” Kannafinwë said, getting louder. Also completely forgetting that Fingon himself was divorced. “And now, if you excuse me, I have to make myself presentable for a six years old party.”

He walked back upstairs to find his robes, instead finding Daeron already awake and holding them out to him. he grabbed them, throwing the fabrics over the bed. They looked at each other for a long time before one finally got the gumptions to talk.

“I heard what you said… about marriage” the sinda began.

“We already talked about this, there is no need. We… we are fine as we are” the other musician said, combing his hair as he sat down near the mirror. “Besides, can you imagine the reaction of your relatives upon finding out that you are sleeping with me? With the bounty on my head issued by your king? It would be an even bigger scandal than Finno´s and Nelyo´s wedding.”

“I wouldn´t mind, not if we get to be together” Dairano said, caressing one lock of his hair. “Elu Thingol already hates me for the role I played in his daughter´s fate and only my reputation as the best minstrel in Middle Earth has protected me from being evicted from his court and city, but…”

“Daeron, no” Maglor talked. “I won´t take you away from your family”

“Makalaurë” the silver haired man released his lock. “My parents barely talk to me now that I have fallen out of Thingol´s graces. The only one from my blood that really talks to me is Mablung and the only thing he and Beleg are interested in is in finding me a nice lady to marry. I already spend so much of my time dodging them to see you that I´m starting to think it´s my actual job.”

“And you think a flee to Formenos would be the end of your problems?” his boyfriend raised an eyebrow. “Elwë will put a bounty on your head too if you were to marry me and you know it.”

“Like I said, I wouldn´t matter…”

“It´s different!! He is your king!!” Maglor banged his hands on the table. “Like it or not, he has a lot more power over you than me and if he were to put a bounty on you…”

“I´m not saying to do it right now, just that” Daeron pulled out a brooch from somewhere, silencing the other minstrel by putting it on his hands. It was a simple silverly thing, clearly Sindarin in it´s design. Beautiful. “you think about it”

“I will” he answered without even thinking, cradling the gift. 

-Later, in the party-

“Come on!!!” at least ten children followed Maeglin, including a Caranthir´s two little ones. Their father´s anxious look followed them everywhere, as if they could banish in thin air if he didn´t. “Let´s take the castle!!”

“Careful, kids!!” Fingon said, carrying a jar of wine to the adult table. Maglor was near, playing an animated sound, smiling as the chipper boys and girls ran around him. “Children, they never ran out of energy.”

“I hope they do, because someone is not going to sleep tonight if he continues like that” Elrond continued with the conversation while Celebrian laughed. “He reminds me a lot of the twins at that age… they played storm the castle at each party back then. Now they only want to ride and hunt.”

“Yes, enjoy them at that age” Fëanor intervened, taking a sip. “Then they start to be difficult and, believe me, teenagers are anything but enjoyable.”

“Fëanáro…”

“What? It´s true!! Or do you miss the blond menace or the black ball of angst?” Caranthir and Celegorm mockingly glared at their parents, knowing full well that they were difficult teenagers back in the Age of the Trees. The raven one returned to watch his children soon, nearly getting up to get to them. “Come on, son, calm down a bit. They are between family, let them enjoy a bit.”

“They might hurt themselves…”

“Cheer up, drink a bit” Curufin insisted, filling Moryo´s cup and preventing him from abandoning his place on the table. Then he turned to Maedhros. “When are you cutting the cake, by the way? The kids are getting tired of just seeing it.”

“The kids or you?” the redhead teased. “But you are right, we have to cut it soon before they get tired of waiting. I will go find the cutlery. With your leave.” 

“Excuse me, I think he might be having difficulties to find the knives” Fingon excuse himself a few minutes later, following his husband into the kitchen. There he found Maitimo fighting with a shelf. “Hey, hey, it´s not like that, easy” he opened it for him, grabbing the implements to cut the cake. “Now it´s fine.”

“I don´t understand, it didn´t open for me”

“Maybe it was because of me” the both of them jumped at the sudden apparition of the Vala Námo. “Be calm, elves, I was just taking a look at young Maeglin. It seems that my little experiment is working better than I expected” the Doomsman somehow softened his expression. “You are certainly raising a good elfling.”

“We are very grateful for your attention and the opportunity to do so, my lord” Findékano said, bowing respectfully. Maitimo did the same, letting him talk. His spouse, after all, had a better record in dealing with the Vala. “He has been nothing but a blessing to us” 

“I have noticed” the Ainur continued. “And that´s what I wanted to talk to you. You see, the favour I did to Maeglin was some sort of experiment I did along with Irmo, as there are some souls that not even my Halls or Nienna´s could help, mainly those elves that happened to be slaves in Angband and Mordor back in Middle Earth.”

“You… you can´t do anything for them?”

“I have for some of them, after I saw the first success in your young one´s case. I have done the same for some, giving them back to their families so they can begin again” he seemed tired for some reason. “But we are talking about generations and generations of slaves, elves born in captivity under the most horrible conditions. And their parents couldn´t take charge of them, not if they are babes or in the same state.”

“I… I see the problem, my lord, but… what do you want us to do?”

“I have been looking for some couples that might be interested in adopting them as you did with Maeglin Lómion. Even manage to hand a few of them over, but there so many that it seems to not have an end” Námo rolled his eyes. “So I was wondering if you could take in a few more.”

“A few?” Maedhros finally talked. He couldn´t believe it.

“Yes. You grew up in a household with plenty of children, so I thought that you might have a similar one for your children. And your father once said that he wanted seven children from each of you”

“Oh, no” Maitimo stared at the Vala as if he was crazy. “I might not be against having more children if Finno wants more, but they are definitely not arriving now and definitely not going to be seven” he crossed his arms. “My father will have to convince another of my brothers to give him more grandchildren.”

“Nelyo…” Fingon tried to calm him down.

“No, Finno, we not ready to deal with another child just now. Lots of couples wait a healthy fifty years between children, or at the very least twenty, before more bundles of joy. I believe we can do the same. I want us to enjoy the experience and our marriage before… before throwing more into our plate.”

“But…”

“It´s no problem” the Ainur said, lifting himself from the chair he has been sitting in. “Giving those former slaves a new life has been taking such a long time that I believe there will still be many available children in fifty years. You just have to consider it. I will leave you to it.”

“Well, that was surprising” the redhead commented when the spirit disappeared. “What do you think about having more children?”

“I would love to” Fingon answered, feeling a lot less pressed now that the Doomsman was not there. “But, as you say, we can start planning for that when Maeglin is fifty and… don´t feel insulted, but seven children is excessive, don´t you think?”

“Of course” he extended a hand. “Shall we?”

The couple walked out with the cutlery in hand, calling the children to the big centrepiece of the banquet. They quickly surrounded it, Maeglin finding his place between his parents. The two of them raised him from the ground to the top of the cake to blow his candles in front of the guests. His family and friends clapped, making the elfling give them a big smile. He was so loved… he wanted to stay like this forever.

-That night-

“Poor little dear” Fingon said as Maitimo put the child on his bed. The kid was completely worn out, having played for hours. He burned so much energy that he felt asleep in the living room as soon as his friends left, surrounded by the new toys he was gifted. “Maybe next year we should take it easier.”

“Come on, love, he loved it” the redhead talked, putting the covers over the kid. “A birthday worth remembering, no doubt of that. Just be grateful that he burned the cake quickly, because it was going to be a pain to make him sleep if he didn´t.”

“That surely” they both looked at their sleeping child from the door, smiling. “Goodnight, little dear.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... how times passes, no? A little timeskip to hasten things a little bit. Well, babies can´t stay babies forever, no? Anyway, Maeglin is happier than any time before, Maedhros and Fingon too, Maglor and Caranthir are having some issues... should they solve them soon?... but everything seems alright for now. Which means that the storm is comming. Ready for it?
> 
> On another note, I´m out of ideas trying to name Caranthir and Haleth´s children after introducing them, care to give me a hand? Review!!!


	13. Chapter 13

“Curufinwë!! Chase the gold that is in that oven over there!!”

“Right away!!”

“Tyelpe!! Those links are not going to make themselves!!”

“On it!!”

Maeglin watched in amazement how the adults around him worked in turning the “trinkets” Fëanor received from Turgon´s treasure into real works of art. He has been in the forge hundredths of times before, since he was a baby, but was still surprising for him. Specially because, since today, he was his apprenticeship with the three best smiths of elvendom. Yes, from now on, he was one more worker at this forge and no longer an audience.

“What are you doing there in the way? Get here so you can see” Fëanáro ordered the boy, who approached with his little hammer in his hand. He handed him a brooch with the symbol of Gondolin in it. “Do you see this?”

“It´s very pretty”

“To untrained eyes maybe” the great smith rolled his eyes. “It´s a rather mediocre work, at least if you compare it with the one we do here in Formenos. Can you see this?” he showed the child something in the metal. He wasn´t able to see them at first, but… “You have to learn to avoid mistakes like this, they are easy to make.”

“What is this, grandfather?” the boy asked, signalling a little engraving in the inner face of the silver implement. Fëanor kept his face straight, but mentally was asking himself if he should answer. “Grandfather?”

“It´s the mark of the Lord of the Hammer of Wrath in Gondolin” he answered, searching for some sort of reaction. “A fabled smith in his own right, but I couldn´t say the same about all the people who works under him. And, of course, he is not as good as I, uncle Curufin and Tyelpe.”

“Hammer of Wrath” the child put on a face before laughing. “What a stupid name for a noble House, don´t you think? If I had my own house, I would choose a better name like… like the Mole!!”

“I don´t know if that would be such a good idea” Fëanáro said, remembering what happened last time. The boy looked at him curiously, but then shrugged and get back to watch Curufin´s work carefully. And while he did that, the elven Prince thought deeply.

The Maeglin that was being raised by Fingon and Maedhros wasn´t anything like the one Aredhel had, that he knew for sure. And not just because he read those sorry excuses for history books Quendingoldo wrote. Nerdanel was a very good friend of Anairë and he was sometimes forced to sit down with the two women as they shared gossip. It was dreadfully boring, but from time to time, he picked up something interesting. Like when the wife of Fingolfin told them about how Irissë and Turgon described the Maeglin they knew from the first life. The boy´s mother described a rather sad and lonely childhood, where her kid barely smiled or was accompanied by his parents outside of the forge, and his uncle described a full blown bastard, which was heavily biased but still carried some truth. Like that Maeglin was… still lonely after failing to make friends with the lords, maybe because of lack of practice. 

Anyway, the thing was that the boy he knew couldn´t be more different from the one they were describing. The one raised in Formenos, despite being essentially the same fëa, was a smiling, friendly little brat with an innate curiosity. He had lots of friends his own age, two great parents, grandparents who spoiled him… he was the happiest child they could think of. And any similarity with his former life could be coincidental or simply because of the rearing. He was, after all, a very talented smith raised in close contact with other talented smiths. And the moles… they kind of provoked that. Putting so many of the animals in front of him since early childhood, of course they were going to end up as his favourite animals again! He was not the only one that believed so.

“Are you going to stay there all day?” Erestor asked, crossing his arms. Glorfindel took his eyes from the forge´s window to stare at him. “I thought your paranoia would have resided when Maeglin proved to be just an ordinary baby.”

“Why are you following me around?” the blond countered. “I already proved I can be on my own in this place without killing anyone…”

“Don´t change the subject. When are you going to be convinced that the child is not a menace to anyone?” Glorfindel snorted. Just wait until that adorable elfling reaches his teens and we will see if he was not a menace to his parents. “What else do you need to convince yourself?"

“To be frank, my friend, I have been sure for quite some time, but… I wanted to see if the forge reawakened some memories in him.”

“Memories that are no longer there”

“Only now I can be sure. He saw Rog´s mark and didn´t bat an eyelash in recognition despite they knew each other quite well from before. For Mandos, he even asked Fëanor if they could visit Gondolin sometime with such an excitement” he shivered at that, picturing how that visit would go. “Hate to be the one to blow that balloon”

“Aha” Erestor said, feeling a little bit uncomfortable with that. Laurefindil just smiled and walked to him, grabbing the steward´s hand. He jumped a bit at the surprising contact.

“Would you want to take a lunch with me?” he asked, the raven´s eyes turning wide. “I heard Celebrimbor invented this thing to keep things cold even in the hardest of summer and now there is ice cream all the year. I have never had an ice cream, have you?” the other´s head shook. “Then let´s try them together, my treat.”

“I… Fine”

Glorfindel lead the way through the street, leaving the problem behind. He had known for long that Maeglin was just a child again and he was happy for that. In some way, Gondolin received justice in the form of it´s murderer´s ultimate disappearance and… well, he remembered Lómion when he was young before. Such a gloomy, sad kid, so dark the lords never knew what to do with him and couldn´t connect with anyone… it was great. And seeing him so full of life made him think, for the first time in his life, that maybe the problem was not entirely the prince´s. Maybe, the problem was… theirs too.

Now that he thought about it, the problem had a lot to do with them, the adults around him. Aredhel and Eöl were the most dissonant couple he could think about, the stern and serious smith and the wild, free spirited lady. So concentrated in their own lives that they barely paid their son attention. Then it was Turgon, the caring and loving parent to his own daughter, but a cold distant guardian to his nephew, more during the time of grief. And Idril, sweet Idril… she was so upset about some of his cousin´s attitudes that she built a wall between them. And the lords were no better. Once they realised that Lómion didn´t share their easy going, friendly natures, they also discriminate him. Salgant was a little better, but he was so immersed in his music that he barely had time to listen to Maeglin. And Tuor openly bullied him once he noticed that he had feelings for his wife. With the lords cheering behind him.

Hummmm, now that he thought about it, they were a bunch of pricks. And in some ways, they still were.  
Glorfindel sighed, looking over his ice cream at Erestor. He looked so much like Ecthelion that he could even fathom how they weren´t related. That conflicted him a bit, especially because of the attraction he kept feeling for the councillor… misplaced maybe. It was not that he denied or reject his own orientation, really, he accepted a long time ago that he liked males, not females, but… it was not something he openly recognized. At least not to someone that was not close to him. And it was hard, as his fellow lords of Gondolin were always writing to him, offering him to introduce him to nissis. He would like it to stop, but then again, Fëanor, Gil-Galad, Elrond and Círdan were the only elf lords in all Valinor who openly accepted different sexual orientations and respect the rights of the people who had it. The other were… a little bit prejudiced at the best. And openly homophobes at worst. An example: Turgon. And his Lords, of course.

Which, in itself, makes him return to Ecthelion, his sweet lyrical Ecthelion. Or maybe he wasn´t his? He didn´t know anymore. No one knew that they had a liaison back in the old Gondolin, or something like that. Shortly after Laurefindil came to terms with his sexuality, fully aware that he never was going to be able to show it to the world, whatever it was began. It wasn´t intentional, the Lord of the Fountain got hopelessly drunk during one of their parties and, before either of the elves could know, they were in bed together. Glorfindel remembered that night clearly and, he could swore, he had never seen something more beautiful than Ecthelion naked on his sheets, skin glowering in the tenuous light. For him it was a magical night, for the other… it was a source of mortification. He started to make sure that he never got completely drunk during his presence. The Fountain still failed sometimes, which his fellow lord clearly take advantage of… but once his mind returned, Ecthelion was mortified. In fact, the golden warrior remembered only once that his old friend said he loved him. It was the only time he held Ecthelion while he was conscious of his actions. In the Fountain´s own bed, Glorfindel had what he thought was the greatest moment of his life, but to his partner was the proverbial last straw. The next day, in a reunion with King Turgon, the Lord of the Fountain announced his engagement, breaking Glorfindel´s heart. And made sure to stay sober from that day on, so nothing more would happen. And nothing happened after that.

But don´t misunderstood him, he knew very well that Erestor was not Ecthelion. They looked somewhat alike, true, but in character they couldn´t be more different. The Lord of the Fountain was an artist at heart, while the Chief advisor was a politician. Sweet voiced, measured, elegant and most important deeply Nolofinwean Ecthelion would never act like the sharp, hard-edged, military and ferociously Feanorian Erestor. At first sight of the two of them, like it happened to him when he arrived in Imladrys centuries ago, were nearly identical, but after meeting them, anyone would know that they were as different as a pear and a lettuce. And, for Glorfindel, it was not only that. Meeting Erestor gave him hope. Hope that he might, after all, get over Ecthelion´s rejection.

“It´s good, don´t you think?”

“Yes… a bit” Erestor answered, looking down at his plate. He had never imagined himself on a… well… date, but… anyway, this was probably not a date. Yes, this surely was just a lunch between friends. Of course. “I… emmm… heard there is a meeting of the Lords of Gondolin soon. Are you eager to go?”

“Not really” the blond said, frowning. If not for Turgon bringing his hate speeches up all the time and the Fountain acting as if he should be weary of him, they would be fine, but… 

“I thought you would be jumping on one feet” the former soldier continued. “With how much you liked to talk about Gondolin back in Imladrys.”

“Well, with the homophobe in chief directing them…”

“Oh, I see” of course. Of course. Glorfindel didn´t want to be there because of Turúkano, not because he wanted to spend more time in Tol Eresseä with the Imladrym. This was just a friendly lunch. He shouldn´t get his hopes up. “Maybe should go for a few minutes, perhaps ask Lord Ecthelion to come someday.”

“No, better not” he sighed. “Ecthelion and me are not so close after I crossed the sundering sea” the truth was that he was glad to be sent back to Middle Earth because it would give him time without seeing his ex, but… “He wouldn´t want to come.”

“A shame, I wanted to know him”

“I will take you to the next meeting of lords if you want”

“No, better not. Turgon sounds like someone that would throw someone out because of his or her former loyalties.”

“In that you are right” they continue eating, talking about nonsense. It was a little bit uncomfortable, but they will get over it. They only need time.

-In another part-

Fëanor walked through the streets of Formenos alone, something strange. It was not that he was like those prudes of lords in the capital that only mobilize between the common people in palanquins or carriages, but he rarely left his forges, so it was uncommon seeing him in the city. Anyway, he did it often enough to not attract views from any by passer. And where was he going so fast? To his son Kanno´s house. He needed some advice regarding children… at least children who had some prohibitions, as he never had to give any to his own boys when they were little.

“Kanno, are you there?” he asked, opening the door with his own key. He gave his sons privacy in their houses, but he hated to wait by the door and refused to do it. Fëanáro was the lord in this place after all. “Kanno?”

There was a sound on the second floor. He got upstairs, making as little sound as he could. The wet sounds continued, coming from a room Maglor usually used as an instrument storage. Without even thinking, he opened the door.

“Kano, I need to… WHAT IN MANDOS?!!” he screamed as his son pushed the nér he has been kissing away from him. And the forbidden territories he had been clearly touching before his father found them.

“Atar!!” the guilty musician said, not knowing where to hide after being found out by the last person he wanted to be catch by. “I… I can explain…"

“Sure you can” the older elf crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow and glaring daggers at the person who had been touching his boy in such an indecent way. A silver haired somebody that seemed to a sinda for all his looks. And a sinda from Doriath. “And?”

“Well… I… ehhh… Daeron and I…”

“So now it´s Daeron and you, eh?” Fëanor continued, his brow escalating even more. The two guilty néri directed their gazes at the floor, not knowing what to say. “Maybe you can explain this to me and your mother in our house, no? When you take tea with us today” he looked at the sun dial. “It´s about tea time, no?”

Makalaurë trembled, not able to do anything. The two lovebirds were dragged off to the castle, where Nerdanel seemed to be already waiting. That or she had tea ready for whatever surprise guests that might show up. The older couple sat down on their seat and, just with a look, made their son spill the beans. From the millennia old relationship between them to who knew they were together. In all the time, only the Feanorian opened his mouth. As, little bit intimidated, the other musician just sat down seeping his tea in silence.

“So… more than a millennia of courtship and you kids haven´t thought about marriage?” asked the redhead, putting down her own cup. “By the way, Makalaurë, why didn´t you tell us about your likings? You know that we are not homophobes like your uncle.”

“I´m bisexual, mother, not… anyway” he coughed a bit. “I had a very good reason, besides. You don´t approve remarriage…”

“When there are children to be affected and only of they are against it” Fëanor clarified. “Didn´t I allow Finno to marry Nelyo? And it was his SECOND marriage.”

“I… didn´t think of that…”

“Do you not want to marry him?” Daeron lifted his head after hearing this. He promised to wait patiently for an answer, but… he wanted to hear it now!

“What?! NO!!” the raven said, red in the face. “I want to marry Daeron since the first time he proposed it, even more than I wanted to marry my first wife” the minstrel touched his sinda hairpin for reassurance. “Really, we have more in common than she and I ever had. And thousands of years proving our compatibility…”

“Yes, we know” Nerdanel refilled the cups quickly. “You were more in love with your music than with her. You and Dairano here seem to be much more compatible.”

“But there is a but, no?” Fëanáro added, looking at a pastry.

"I just… don´t want him to have problems with Elu Thingol” the three others felt a great need to roll their eyes. That nér again? The maia´s boy toy? Who did he think he was? “He is already at odds with his family and king because of what happened with that Luthien girl, I don´t want to give him mo…”

“Talking about that, it might be too late” the sinda finally talked. 

“What?” his lover turned to glare at him.

“Thingol already knows and banned me from Doriath” the silver haired elf rubbed his head, nervous. “I received an emergency letter from Mablung before I even left the port, that´s why I returned in such a haste.”

“WHAT?!”

“I know, I know, should have been careful…”

“Careful?! This is a big problem! One the size of Valinor itself!!” Kanno suddenly felt the need to bang his head on the table. “Just what we needed, another reason for Thingol to hate us. Fantastic.”

“He already hated us both before he knew of this, I don´t think his level of hate has been altered by this tiny revelation” Daeron reminded him, smiling. “Might I be allowed to stay in your house for a while? Perhaps… until Arda is unmade?"

“No guy who is sleeping with my son is going to stay at his house any longer without a marriage” Fëanor said, glaring at the lovebirds. Maglor also glared at his boyfriend, but didn´t say anything. 

“What do you say, Kano?” the musician asked the other. “Have you thought of the proposition I made to you?” he caressed the hair ornament Makalaurë had recently been wearing daily. “Do you want to marry me?”

“I…”

“And don´t think you are obligated to accept or anything, I can take care of myself” it was true. Mablung had sent him enough money to buy himself a house or at least a small flat in Formenos, where Thingol wouldn´t reach him. “If you don´t want to or you need more time to come to a decision…”

“Of course I will marry you, you bastard” interrupted the raven. “Three hundredth years together hasn´t showed you that we are for each other? And maybe Thingol finding out is really a blessing, because now I can do it without feeling that I´m tearing something from you.”

“A true blessing in disguise”

“All settled then” Nerdanel said, happy to have another wedding to plan. Oh, if only she could marry off all of her children… and another married couple meant more grandchildren! Perhaps another granddaughter!!

“Nothing is settled” Fëanor interrupted, pinching her bubble. She turned to her husband, only to relax. He was doing this for the sake of dramatics, there was nothing to be afraid for. She will let him have his fun then. “No one is marrying my son without asking my permission” he stabbed the table with a knife, startling the younger couple. “And considering what you were doing before, you will have to beg on your hands and knees for my permission” the two elves were still immobile, scared. “What are you waiting for, boy?! On your knees, I said!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And a new chapter!!! What do you think about the couples? And cute curious Maeglin? Glorfindel will have something with Erestor or will he make up with Ecthelion? And in the next chapter, our favourite couple and their elfling are going to go to a wedding. And a little extra surprise. Review!!


	14. Chapter 14

Argon have never been so happy in his life. After so many years postponing the wedding, his bride finally stood in front of him, her beautiful golden vanya hair under an exquisitely embroidered veil (not Míriel´s or Caranthir´s unique level of work, but good enough for a future princess). The banquet in Fingolfin´s house in Gondolin and their future in-laws houses in Valimar have already passed and now they were standing in front of each other, ready to proclaim their love for each other in the name of Eru Illúvatar. He extended his hand to accept the hairpiece his future mother in law extended to him…

“HALT THERE!!” someone screamed. His bride´s smile suddenly broke and an expression of horror overcame her. He turned to see a silver haired nér, breathing as if he had run all the distance from Doriath to Valimar. 

“Ilcamë? Who is that?” asked Arákano, knowing full well that the girl knew him. Iron hells, he could practically read in her face that she did.

“He is… someone I used to know” the nís ruffled uncomfortable. “He paid court to me once, long time ago.”

“Really?” Argon frowned. A rejected suitor could have only come here for one thing: to ruin his wedding. He released his dear´s hand to tell him to fuck off in his most irate way when the other elf began speaking again.

“Long time ago? Long time ago?!!” the nér screamed. “You were promising to marry me last week, when you were still wearing my ring!!”

“What?!” the prince couldn´t believe his ears. His bride, his official betrothed for more than ten years, wearing another man´s ring? Cheating on him and promising his affections to another? No, it had to be some sort of mistake.

“Yes!! And I can prove it!!” he held an elaborate ring with an elegant arrangement of moonstones… definitely of Fëanorian forge, maybe even Celebrimbor´s. “This was the ring I gifted to her when I asked her to marry me!! It has a song that reveals if your lover has been faithful or…”

“WAIT!!!” another nér interrupted whatever the first one was going to say. “Ilcamë, my love, I have come for you!!”

Argon was completely dumbfounded, as were his parents in law to be. Three more elves arrived claiming to be Ilcamë´s prince charming, which sent him looking for his own family for some sort of explanation or support. But he found none of that. Fingolfin seemed scandalized, too much to say something. His mother seemed more concerned, but she also had that expression of satisfaction because she was right about that skank that made him turn to Turno, who just made him signals to continue with the ceremony… everything to save face. And Irissë was not even there, having found something or someone more important than him.

“Prince Arákano, clearly these young men are lying” Ilcamë´s father said, trying to end with the theatre. “My daughter wouldn´t…”

“How not?! I have probes!!” the first one, Eneldur, screamed that, followed by some words and suddenly his ring was playing the memories of all of Ilcamë´s infidelities. Which were a lot. Ashamed and publically humiliated, Arákano Nolofinwion ran away from the place. He didn´t know if he was the only one or if anyone saw his tears. He only wanted to get out of there.

He stopped running back in his parent´s houses, where he collapsed crying in his bed. For some hours, he did just that in his bed, clutching an old rabbit plushie Finno had given him when he turned five. Tears continued running. They didn´t seem to stop. He… He… He wanted someone to tell him that everything was alright, someone to pat his back and tell him everything was going to be alright, that this hurt in his heart won´t stay forever.   
But who?

Fingolfin was frozen for now and probably would never want to talk about the incident ever again once he returned back home, saving face even if it hurt Argon.

Anairë seemed like a better option, as she was kind and sweet and would care for his feelings and hush him as when he was a child and tell him that everything was going to be alright, yonya… but, at the same time, she would have that I-told-you-so expression that Arákano despised because she was ultimately right. He didn´t want to see that right now.

Irissë would be as good as non-existent in this situation.

Turúkano and his family would only drag him back to the altar, everything to save both the family´s image to the whole nobility and their precious vanyarin alliance.

And Finno… would Finno even open his door to him? He had been a prick to his oldest brother for a long time, discriminating him for someone that wasn´t worthy. Argon felt so bad right now. Finno was respectful, loving, caring and he needed him so, so much right now!! He wanted Finno to hug and reassure him. Would Finno receive him now?

Without even thinking, he grabbed his cloak. Time to make a trip for Formenos.

-In Formenos-

“Maeglin Lómion Nelyafinwion, come back here!! Bad elfling!! Come here!!” Fingon sighed and got out of his room with his robes unfastened. He peeked into the corridor only to find Maedhros still in his sleeping clothes, chasing a half-naked Maeglin. “Stop!! We are going to be late for Maglor´s wedding!!”

“No! Catch me!” he continued evading his redheaded father, only to be caught by his other one. 

“So much trouble for getting him to dress, no?” the raven smiling mockingly at the other, which blushed a bit. “Do you want me to dress our elusive little mole here?”

“No, I got it” he grabbed the child, which squirmed in his arms. “Get my clothes out of the closet, will you? I will have him ready for you to fix his hair in a few seconds”

Fingon nodded and went back to their shared bedroom, sighing inwardly. Who could have thought that parenting could be that hard? Ereinion wasn´t that bad, at least not during the time he had him… which had not been that long, now that he thinks of it. And Elrond and Elros… well, Maitimo always said that Elrond was an angel, but refused to comment about Elros (the other peredhel twin was a hurricane made child, nearly making both Feanorian brother´s hairs turn white). Maybe he did… Fingon didn´t know. Anyway, he should hurry, or they were really going to be late.

“Ready!!” the redhead announced, carrying a dressed Maeglin over his shoulder. He released the elfling just in front of him. “All yours”

“Go dress, you are next” Fingon instructed him, grabbing his son´s shoulders to sit him back on the stool in front of him. he started brushing the boy´s hair, before braiding it to hold the strands of silky black hair away from his face. He added a few childish hair ornaments, as he was now old enough to wear them at formal occasions. “Ready, it was not so bad, no?”

“Mole” he said, signalling one of the pins.

“Yes, it´s a mole” the older elf smiled, pushing the jewellery box away. “Your cousin Celebrimbor made them specially for your birthday…”

“He should have made something else, no?” Maedhros said, emerging from the bathroom completely dressed. “This child is going to end up obsessed with moles at the rate he is collecting the damn things.”

“It isn´t something wrong” Findékano talked, patting the stool Maeglin had just left. “It´s your turn now, sit down. Yonya, bring me the box over there, would you? I need to do your father´s braids.”

“You don´t have to, I can do my hair…”

“With that ponytail you are so fond of? I think no, thank you” Finno said, grabbing the brush. “We are going to your brother´s wedding, not to a battlefield. You are going to properly style your hair for that. I won´t let my husband to look dishelmed in a formal occasion.”

“Of course… wife” there was a hard tugging on his scalp.

“What did you say?”

“Wife”

“Oh, you didn´t”

“And what are you going to do if I did?”

“Well, I…”

“Atar! This looks pretty, wouldn´t it be better” the elfling said, returning with a box he struggled a bit to carry. Maedhros´ eyes widened, recognising the velvet thing. It contained an especially ornate pair of matching circlets, a gift from his father for his anniversary. They were a little bit uncomfortable and more works of art than proper headwear, but…

“Oh, no” the redhead said when he saw the gleam in his beloved´s face. “No, no, no, no”

But no matter how much he refused to wear the damn thing, Fingon always seemed to have a way to make him do whatever he wanted. A few minutes later, he was grumpily standing in the main table of his brother´s wedding banquet with his husband and son. Finno was even wearing the matching circlet His mother complimented him, saying that the circlet bring that lovely grey in his eyes. He didn´t see how.

“Finally you wear something I made for you” Fëanor commented, sipping his wine. Maedhros noticed that there was much more food on the table than it should, but he could guess why. Normally, a couple had two wedding banquets, offering by the two families. But Daeron, disowned by his Doriathrim parents, didn´t have any, so only the Feanorians were offering the meal. And right out bragging about it. 

“Findékano made me wear it” the redhead answered, looking away. 

“Then perhaps you should listen to him more often. If only you wear your hair in some other stile than the ponytail you love so much…”

“I said exactly the same!” Fingon, the traitor, supported his father.

“Ponytails are practical” he defended himself, blushing a bit. “And were very popular back in early Númenor, if Makalaurë could be trusted.”

“Yeah, because Elros idolatrized you, atya” Elrond said, smiling wickedly. “He nearly turned Gil-Galad here crazy with his refusal to wear any elvish style in court, no matter what our new tutors said about his ponytails.”

“On whose side you are?”

“On theirs” the healer answered, without a hint of shame. “Ponytails were good in Himring or Amon Ereb, where practicality was needed, but you are in Valinor now, atya, you should broad your horizons again.”

“Traitor. Traitors, all of you” he said, mockingly glaring at his family. Finno and Elrond laughed, while Maeglin didn´t notice it, too worried showing as much cake as he could in his mouth. He had to say, the elfling really had a talent for cramming so much in his little mouth without suffocating.

“There, there, honey” Fingon continued. “I can assure you, you look fantastic. With the grumpiness and all.”

“Want my hair back to it´s former comfortable way”

“Come on, you promised that at least for especial occasions, love” the raven passed a hand through his red locks. “I, for once, am glad to see you like this. It´s like the good old times, you know, back in the Age of the Trees.”

“Oh, interesting” Elrond chipped in again. “How was good old Maitimo?”

“Elrond…”

“What? He never told you?”

“No, he refused to talk about the past. And he must have had enough blackmail material on Maglor to make him shut up too.”

“I warn you…”

“Well, I can´t give you all the details, but…”

Two hours of his husband sharing with his son, stepson and grandsons the most embarrassing histories from his teenage years after, a grumpy Maedhros was standing in front of the altar, in the front row, witnessing the bonding of Maglor and Daeron. His brother and the sinda lord looked happy, so happy that they light up the place. Great. They will be happy together.

Normally now the mothers would give each of them a jewel to wear, but then again Daeron´s parents might never again speak to their son, so only Nerdanel gave something to the minstrel. Luckily Maglor was wearing that hairpin his lover has given him, an ancient relic of Doriath itself. Then they pronounced their promises and the public clapped when they were finally bonded.

“Doesn´t it reminds you of something else?” Fingon whispered to his husband during the clapping. This one smiled down at him. It truly was like their long awaited wedding, with all and the absent parents of one of the groom. Well, absent father really, because Anairë was there to give her blessing.

“Your mother was there on the occasion” he whispered back.

“What do you think he had to do for Fëanor to accept this marriage?” he continued. “I remember he made me beg on my knees just for sake of dramatics.”

“The same, if Turko can be believed”

Maeglin ignored them, clapping happily at how happy his uncle looked with his new husband. To him, another uncle married meant more cousins to play. He could always use new friends, especially now that uncle Caranthir was more paranoid than ever. He hasn´t been able to play with Muinafinwë and Rátissë for days!! And now, when was this going to end? He had so much energy after that last piece of cake and need to burn it now.

“Stand straight, little mole” Fingon whispered to him, scolding him amusedly. “Didn´t I tell you not to eat so much sweets? Now endure it.”

“I want to play”

“You will be able to do it in the reception, now stand still”

Just as he promised, as soon as the clapping and congratulations finished, the elflings were set loose by their parents. All of them had preferred the dessert table of the banquet and now had too much energy to burn. They soomed around the room, but that hardly concerned the adults, who were occupied in dancing. The music was spectacular after all. It showed that the two grooms were musicians.

“Do you think he is going to get out of his high anytime soon?” Maedhros asked as he and his husband circled in the dance floor. Fingon laughed, getting a look of utter adoration in his beloved´s face.

“No, not soon. Thankfully, we have hours to go before he has to go to bed”

He was right, of course, but that didn´t take the sensation that they were up for a surprise when they were back home. But the day transcurred so peacefully that the premonition was soon forgotten. Until finally, deep in the night, when they returned home after saying goodbye to the Feanorians with Maeglin asleep over Maitimo´s shoulder, they arrived home to find a really tall someone desperately ringing their doorbell.

“Arko?” Fingon asked, surprised to see one of his siblings there. This one turned around to look at them before starting crying and throw himself into Finno´s arms, which surprised the older Nolofinwion enough not do anything until Argon was firmly clung to him like a leech, babbling and crying his heart off. His older brother uncomfortably patted his back. “Okay, Arko, what happened?”

“She… six néri… illicit affair… the whore… I loved her!!” he managed to say, but it was enough for the two older brothers to understand that he had just gotten his heart broken.

“There, there, Arko, everything is going to be alright” Findékano said in a calming tone, dragging his brother inside while Maehdros kept the door open. The redhead also quickly disappeared upstairs with the elfling, hoping that Argon hadn´t seen him.

Whether had he seen Maeglin or not, Arákano didn´t mention it. He simply clung to his eldest brother´s formal robe and cried, staining it with sooth. Fingon simply provided support, no matter that the guy has been an utter dick to him since he started to date that vanya skank. By the time Maitimo returned with a box of tissue in his hands, the crying had lowered down a bit, but Argon was still hugging his brother as if to keep him captive.

“Everything is alright, Arko, come, blow here” the shortest raven grabbed one of the tissues and blew his brother´s nose. “At least you didn´t make the mistake of marrying her.”

“Hummm…”

“And, for the next time, you will be wiser picking up a mate” he continued, patting the other´s back. This caused another bout of crying in the youngest son of Fingolfin, that made the other one reassume the hushing. Or at least kiss goodbye his plan to ravish Nelyo´s ardent body all night, taking advantage of Maeglin´s deep sleep. A few hours later, it seemed that Argon was finally calming down, so… “Shush, everything is going to be alright…”

“I didn´t do anything to her… I was faithful… I was… I was… I was good for her” he finally let go of his brother, grabbing another paper from the box. “I… I even started to pay more attention to religion to get on better with her family… I… I was such a jerk to you for her… I´m so sorry, Finno.”

“Hey, in the scale of jerks on this family, you don´t even reach the third place” said the former High King in a soothing tone. “Don´t worry, you will eventually find someone who actually loves you as you deserve.”

“Yes, like… like you and cousin Nelyo” Arákano commented, finally accepting their successful and happy marriage. It made Fingon happy, as maybe now they could repair their relationship. “By the way, was that an elfling he was carrying? Did Nelyo had another nephew?”

“No, he is…” should he lie or not? Well, lying wouldn´t help much, as truth was bound to be found sooner than later. Better going with that path. “he is our son.”

“Ahhh, you adopted” Argon continued, blowing his nose again. “I should have sent my congratulations earlier then. Tell me, is he a Child of Mandos?”

“Child of Mandos?” Findékano raised an eyebrow, not familiar with that term. “What is that?”

“An adult elf who has been reborn as a baby due to… complications in his or her soul” Argon said. “I confess that I have never seen one of them so closely before. Can I meet him?” 

“No” Finno answered, biting his lips. He was being a little bit harsh with poor Arákano, but he kind of deserve it, so… besides, there were more urgent matters to attend to. “Arko, I need you to tell me everything you know about the Children of Mandos.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two weddings with completely different outcomes and Argon using Fingon as his emotional support... well, he didn´t really have much of an option, no? Muinafinwë and Rátissë are teh names I picked for Caranthir´s children. They meant "hidden Finwë" and "woman who excel". I think they are good names. They are children for now, but next... who knows? And I´m not over with Maeglin and his dear family either. What will happen next? Review!!


	15. Chapter 15

“Is he any better?” Maedhros asked as he saw Argon sleeping in their guest room. Fingon was at the door also, worried. But not so much for his brother, who was only nursing a broken heart, but for something else. “Finno…”

“Children of Mandos… that´s how they call what Maeglin is. A second chance given by the Valar themselves and they converted it into a derogatory name for the former slaves of Angband and Mordor” the redhead´s eyes hardened. “Apparently, they are not as accepted as we believed outside of Formenos, Lindon, Falas and Tol Eresseä.”

“Much like different sexualities…”

“It´s a little bit more than that. And much is thanks to my idiot brother and the Maia´s Gigoló” he rolled his eyes. Maitimo only looked at the elf in the bed. “Not this one, the other. The one with more prejudices than brains.”

“Ah, Turgon” the Feanorian crossed his arms. “What did he do now?”

“Well, he said that those Children of Mandos that were born in Gondolin but captured in the Fall and turned into slaves are welcomed in his city, but the ones that come after them, FROM THEM, are nothing but the spawn of evil, of Morgoth himself, and should be destroyed as the Feanorians should have been.”

“And Thingol?”

“Of the same opinion, as ever. Ingwë wouldn´t say anything, like the religious fanatic he is, but he refuses to accept them too. He fears that they might retain something of their former lives despite the assurances of both Námo and Irmo that they are perfectly cleansed of all of them. My grandmother Indis… she hasn´t pronounced herself, but if she were to support her brother´s views…”

“Tirion would never go under the reforms it needs to accept those who had differences. She holds too much of a grasp on the High King for that” 

That was true, they knew it. Arafinwë listened a lot to his wife and mother, both of them from very different points of view. As a telerin by birth, Earwën was much more open than her vanyarin mother-in-law in the matters of homosexuality and possibly adoption. She was of the believe that as long as they kept it between themselves and didn´t hurt anyone, two adult elves could do whatever they want with their sexuality. She and Olwë even accepted that some same sex couples live in their own house, despite not being married, as the were not that open yet. They also have not openly declared politics of more open minded places like Formenos and Tol Eresseä an abomination… summarising, they were as open as elves of Valinor who never left could be. On the other side, the proud vanyarin Indis was more than a bit homophobic, had publically denounced her grandson Findékano for choosing to divorce and remarry a nér, hear complains about “perverts” from the subjects of her son and bring them to the king, in hopes of making them “seek the right path”. Besides, she had a close relationship with Turúkano, another notable homophobe that was already making plans against Formenos…

“Would you… would you mind if I accompany Argon and Ereinion to Tirion tomorrow?” Fingon asked, making his husband look worried. “I won´t take any risk, I swear, but I need to talk to my mother and Queen Earwën face to face. To uncle Arafinwë too, if he were to grant me an audience.”

“He won´t grant one to someone from Formenos”

“To you or your brothers, no. To me… that´s about to be seen” he turned around to go to their room. “I will depart for Tirion tomorrow. Take care of Maeglin while I´m not here.”

“Take care”

“Me, take care? You take care” Fingon smiled wickedly. “Do you think you can care for an elfling on your own for a few days?”

“I had six brothers and two sons!!”

“But they are not as active as our little mole”

“Clearly you didn´t met Elros”

“I would have liked that” Fingon shook his head. “Come with me, if I´m to spend some days in the capital, I would like to depart with memories that will have me warm for my stay in such a cold place.”

-A few days after, in the capital-

Findékano Astaldo Nolofinwion stepped out of the carriage and into Tirion for the first time since he came out as homosexual. Many looks descended on him when he came out in the light, wearing the symbols of both the Houses of Fingolfin and Fëanor, but he remained firm. Firm under the disdainful looks and snears he got for his presence and the comments of “pervert” and “kinslayer”. Argon and Gil Galad were with him, giving some moral support. The first one cowered a bit when the welcoming comettee appeared.

“My grandson, great to see you here” Indis said, her emerald eyes landing sweetly on Arákano, completely passing her first grandchild. Turúkano, right by her side, scrunched up his nose. It gave Fingon the sensation that he was smelling something foul. “And Ereinion, always great to have you here.”

“Great Grandmother” the younger elf bowed towards her in respect. “I´m glad to be here, but you are forgetting to greet someone.”

“Who?”

“Me, grandmother” the former High King finally said. “Findékano, your first grandson”

“Did I had a grandson before Turúkano?” the nís said, looking down at him. “I remember that I did and I had so many hopes put on that elfling, but when I believed that he had achieved everything, he decided to leave everything for a Feanorian manwhore. I also believe he died that day… isn´t that not?”

“Grandmother…”

“I believe we should hear him out” Turgon suddenly meddled. “Perhaps he is here to apologize and say he regretted his ways.”

“With how he is dressed, I´m not inclined to hope” the vanya continued. “But let´s hear him out, my darling” she smiled at his second grandson by Fingolfin. “What are you here for, my ill-born grandson? After the ridicule you landed over our family, you should know that you are less than welcome here.”

“Over the family? I did nothing to our family” the former High King said, facing the blond queen with strength. Years of dealing with homophobes like his grandmother taught him to defend himself in those situations. “The only thing I´m culprit of is following my own heart, I regret nothing.”

“Following your heart? Your baser instincts, more likely” Indis sneered. “Enough of this, why are you really here, Findékano? No one of Formenos is welcome here.”

“I came here as a member of the House of Fingolfin, as much as you both hate to think of me as that, to speak on behalf of my husband´s house with King Arafinwë and Queen Earwën about the Children of Mandos...”

“Not that again!! The last time someone tried to bother us to talk about those monsters we threw them out” she rolled her eyes. “I think they were from Lindon, Ereinion, have your politics really turned blasphemous?”

“Great grandmother…”

“I believe the Vala Námo is the one that gave them this second chance” Fingon said, trying to prevent a fight between her and his son. “Are you not a believer in the Valar?”

“Yes, but Námo can commit mistakes. He demonstrated this when he released Moringotto from his Halls” the vanyar continued. “I have already sent a letter to the King of Arda himself about that matter. He has not answered me, but his silence must be deep contemplation of my concerns about the Doomsman.”

“Or doubt in your sanity”

“Careful there, Findékano” Turgon advanced in his grandmother´s rescue. “We won´t hesitate to have you thrown out of the city if you continue so daring, family or not.”

“Try, brother dear” the other raven answered, glaring at his much taller brother. “And let all see who is the superior swordfighter” the other gritted his teeth as Fingon pushed him aside. “I´m here to talk to the King and Queen, anyway, as any noldor has a right to. Move aside.”

“Too bad, Arafinwë went to Alqualondë yesterday, taking his wife with him” Findékano´s face turne feral. This had to be her work, he was sure. She must have known that Argon would look towards him for comfort and say something that might spark the interest of the Feanorians. And the vanya couldn´t let them take this matter to Arafinwë or gain an ally in court in Earwën. It might make them change opinions. “If that´s all…”

“How could you?! Are you so afraid of reforms that you would send the King away from his people just to keep them from happening?!” the former King screamed. “If the elves of Tirion want a reform, they shall have it!! This is no Vanya Land!!”

“One of the duties of a Ruler is to keep his subjects in the right way!! The way of the Valar!! One you, disgusting pervert who dayly blasphemes against them, wouldn´t know!!” Turúkano got in again, then turning to his grandmother. “See? This is exactly what I´m trying to avoid. We need to contain the infection in that accursed place before it reaches the good elves…” 

“What infection? Open mindness and different ways of thinking? I believe they have happened to exist in many places for a long time, brother dear.”

“Shut up!!” Turgon said with a red face to rival Caranthir. “When my Wall is ready…”

“Wall? What Wall?” this surprised Fingon. He turned to Argon and Ereinion for explanations, but they were just as surprised as him.

“The Wall I´m going to build about Formenos to keep they lawless ways contained” explained the Lord of Gondolin with a smug look. “It´s still a project I have to take up to the king, but once it´s ready, and with my men manning it, it will keep those kinslayers contained in their miserable island…”

“You are mad” his older brother said, gritting his teeth. “You talk about it as if it is a reality when it´s but a project. A project both of us know Arafinwë won´t ever allow” it was true. Finarfin and Fëanor might be at odds with each other, but they would never do something to intentionally hurt each other. Or so many of their people. “You are mad”

“It´s you who are mad if you haven´t repent your ways” Turgon said, turning around with Indis. “Good day, Findékano. Hope better luck next time seeing the king… if there is a next time.”

“What a pair” Finno contained the desire to scream. He couldn´t believe them!! They were so willing to ostracise other people for what they believe to be faults and never realised the level they took intolerance to was actually one!! “I should go, have to warn uncle Fëanor a…”

“Findékano?” someone asked from the shadows of a pilar. A known voice… it couldn´t be. He turned around to find himself face to face with his grandfather Finwë. He was the same as always except for his crown, which still rested on his youngest son´s head. “Finno, I´m so glad to see you…”

“Me too, grandfather” something stirred inside of him, but it was not entirely happiness. No… because he had heard the Feanorians. And he KNEW. “Maybe you aren´t to day yet, after so many centuries in Mandos, but…”

“Oh, no, I was put to day by Indis” he answered, waving a hand. “I was hoping you would take some tea with me. I have a private terrace in the room your uncle has given to me, so no one would bother you there.”

“Of course, grandafather” he answered, bowing a bit. He bidded Arákano and Gil Galad goodbye and followed Finwë to the mentioned place. Fingon noticed with some appreciation that it was a very nice place, much like the one Nerdanel and Fëanor had in their own home, but with less statues. And more flowers. Thousands of them. 

“First of all” the ancient elf began after pouring the tea for both of them. “I have to congratulate you over your recent marriage. I have a wedding gift ready somewhere in the room I would like you to deliver Maitimo…”

“I think it would be better if you deliver it yourself” he said with a little bit of bite. Finwë lowered his head with a little bit of shame. 

“I don´t know if Fëanáro would like to see me on his home…”

“He has wanted to see you for a long time, you are the only one who believes the contrary” Finno sipped his tea a bit, trying to contain his curiosity. And failing. “What gave you that idea? Uncle has always been very close to you.”

“Finno, I…”

“He was still sad that you refused to see him or his sons in Mandos…”

“Finno, please…”

“You hurt him a lot, don´t you know? He practically died trying to avenge you and then you shunned him and his sons. Many people would agree to be ashamed of them, but you? I believed that you loved them.”

“Of course I do!! Don´t ever suggest the contrary!!” Finwë jumped on his seat, knocking over his own cup. Sighing, he sat down again. “I love my son and grandsons, all of them. No matter what they did or do.”

“Then why did you shun them?” 

“I… I am afraid of meeting them. If I do in this moment, I might hurt them even more. And they don´t deserve that” he bit his lip. “I haven´t even talked about this with Arafinwë or Nolofinwë when they were here…”

“You have talked to them then? Aren´t you afraid of hurting them?”

“Finno, hear me before…”

“No” he lifted himself. To see the grandfather he admired so much during childhood like this… what a shame. “I have had enough of you acting like a fucking coward, avoiding your son and grandsons for whatever reason. Don´t you see what you are losing for this? My wedding, Makalaurë´s…”

“Wait, Kannafinwë has gotten married? I had no idea” the nér tried to change the conversation, earning only a roll of his eyes. “I have no wedding gift for him and his bride, but if you are willing to stay a few days…”

“You know, deliver them yourself” he walked away from that place, leaving his desolate grandfather alone.

After a few hours of walking the busy streets of Tirion, Findékano finally cooled off enough to feel shame. He hadn´t wanted to be so rude to poor Finwë, it was just that… Maitimo sounded so sad when he commented that he had never visited them on Mandos or Formenos when they were out… as if he was purposely avoiding them out of shame, that it made his blood boil. He shouldn´t act out like that on a grudge that was not even his own, but… whatever hurt Nelyo hurt him too. And Fëanor… sometimes it was scary to see what a grudge he beared to his once beloved father.

He was so deep in his thoughts that he didn´t even notice the people staring and snearing at him, recognizing him as the dishonoured Nolofinwean Prince, or the sole figure following him from the palace. At least not until a hand lightly landed on his shoulder.

“Grandfather?” he asked, recognizing Finwë despite the hooded cape he was wearing. “Why are you dressed like that? Isn´t it too sunny to wear a hood?”

“I think… dammit, I know you were right when you told me I should stop avoiding Formenos like the plague. It´s time for me to face what I did and see my son” he said with a determinate face, as if he was about to embark into a great and difficult quest. “I´m ready, take me to them.”

“Do you realise that you are about to sail on a ferry to visit family and not to slay Glaurung with a bamboo stick, right?” Finno asked, stranged by that look of determination. “And what is grandmother going to say?”

“Indis can say whatever she wants, but if I need, I will remind her that Fëanáro is still my son and I love him as much as I love her children.” He waved a hand dismissively. “And nothing is going to stop me if I decided to see him, not even her.”

Fingon nodded. Perhaps this wasn´t going to be an absolute disaster as he feared. Indis was going to be more than a little angry at him, Turgon was going to explode and let´s not talk about Fëanor… but a disastrous disaster this was not going to be.

“Besides, I brought some gifts for all of them from my own forges” he fished on the bag he was carrying until he found a ring. “Isn´t it pretty? Tyelpe is going to love this, he has always liked rings.”

Or maybe not.

-In Alqualondë-

“You know your mother didn´t ask us to come just to seal this treaty with my father, no?” Earwën said while her husband and she took their afternoon tea. He only nodded, as he had suspected his mother´s reasons since she proposed going in person. “Then why did you accept?”

“Because I wanted to see what she was planning, something I knew you would inform me immediately” he smiled at her, which was returned. He was so proud of his choice of a wife. Earwën might not be an artist talent like Nerdanel or a compassionate social activist like Anairë, but she was smart. Politically smart. And a great spymaster. “So, my beautiful swam?”

“You are not going to like it” she landed her cup delicately. “Indis shooed us away so we couldn´t talk to Findékano about the Children of Mandos, a subject that has been of great interest lately” the queen said. “Besides, she is searching your Tressury for financial support for Turúkano´s newest construction project.”

“What proyect? Another Tower of the King? A statue of himself the size of Thrangorodrim itself?” he joked, taking a drink.

“A Wall around Formenos manned by his own, to supress their ideas and ways of living” Finarfin spat all his tea. WHAT? That was insane!! They couldn´t just oppress a significant part of the population! And they needed Formenos, as much as he didn´t want to admit it. The island held some of the best smiths of all times and, despite having good ones inland, the quality of their exportations and how much it cost was not something they could affort to lose. Also, with Fëanor, Curufin, Telperinquar and Mahtan living there, that Wall won´t last ten seconds against whatever their wicked minds could conjure. “Yes, I was surprised too.”

“Surprised?! I´m horrified!!” the golden haired elf got up. “I´m going back to Tirion right now, before they could do something. You can stay if you want.”

“I will go with you” Earwën said, trying to conceal her amusement. “You should have someone by your side when you put your dear mother in her place. And her protegee too, of course.”

“What would I do without you?” he kissed her sweetly before they both excited the room. It was such a shame to say goodbye to her father so soon, but for the good of the Kingdom, she would have to do it. Besides, it was high time someone made some changes around here. And being known as the Reformist Queen… it was something worth fighting Indis for.

-Some time later, in Formenos-

“And then he told me that the Silmarils were the most beautiful sight he had ever put his eyes on in his entire existence” Fëanor huffed. “As if I want to even remember I created those damn rocks.”

“We all thank the Valar that you learned your lesson, my dear” Nerdanel patted his hand before returning to her own breakfast. They were taking it early, as there were some orders to fullfill for the both of them. “I was working on a statue of Elenwë for her birthday, but…”

“Put on a mustache on her face and no one would notice the difference.”

“Fëanáro!!” they laughed together until a door opened, revealing Fingon and Maedhros, along with someone that was trying to hide behind them. “Good day, my son, Findékano. Who is your friend?”

“Visits for Atar, from Tirion” Maitimo said, a little bit uncomfortable. He took a step aside a few seconds later, revealing the visitor. Fëanor´s eyes went wide when they crossed with his father´s after so many centuries.

“Hello, my son” former High King Finwë said with a little smile. “I believe we should talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Family confrontation waiting to happen!! And well, I wasn´t planning to put Finwë in the history, but suddenly I had this idea and couldn´t let it pass. Indis... it´s a little bit of a bitch in this fic, but for how they described the Vanyar as ardent religious believers, so I guess that makes them a little bit bigoted in things like homosexuality. If you don´t like it, you can skip this chapter. Read you next time!! Review!!


	16. Chapter 16

At first, Fëanor became completely still. The sight of his father after so many centuries of the nér avoiding him… it was as if seeing a ghost. His first instinct told him to go embrace the former High King, but then a wave of rage assaulted him. It was not a burning hate like the one he used to feel for Morgoth, but… he was still angry at him. Very, very angry. And that, for him, meant fire.

“Hello, my son” Finwë said in a calm tone. Also loving, as if he was genuinely happy to see his wayward offspring.   
“I believe we should talk.”

“Me too” he answered, trying to contain his rage. He signalled the seat directly across him at the table. Nerdanel watched the two for a second before ushering the two younger elves out of the room. This was a private matter, after all, and they shouldn´t interfere. “Take a seat, please.”

“Thank you” the other sat down with grace. “I… I like what you have done with the place” he started, trying to find some point of compromise, something to talk before this went awful. “Reminds me a little of the one the apartment in the palace Arafinwë gave me have. Nolo and I enjoy taking tea there…”

“Of course you have talked to them. And possibly their offsprings too” Finwë bit his lip. He hadn´t meant to hurt his boy with his attitude, but… well, better get this done. “Should have know that the one ones you didn´t bother to contact was your kinslaying son and his brood of outlaws…”

“Fëanáro! Don´t talk about yourself and your children like that!!”

“As if that was not what you think of us!! If not, the why haven´t you visited us since we were reborn?! Or worse, why didn´t you come to us in Mandos?! We were there thousands of years, entire ages… alone with each other” he breathed in once, shakily. “Just say what you are going to say already.”

“What do you think I was going to say?”

“That I was no longer your son and my children your grandchildren, that we are disowned and alone…”

“What in Mandos gave you that idea?!” the former High King said, alarmed, now faced with all the damage he has done. His poor, poor boy… did he really think that?

“Why else would you have avoided us as if we were a plague? Much like the others, might I add.”

“F… Fëanáro, listen” Finwë said, seriously. “I did avoid you, yonya, but it was not because of that” he extended his hand, putting it on his son´s face. One delicate finger caressed his cheek, finding it wet with tears. Oh, what had he done? “You are and will always be my child. My precious Fëanáro, never doubt of my love for you, because it´s as strong as when you were born. I love you, yonya.”

“Then why…”

“I was only trying not to hurt you…”

“Oh, then it´s okay to abandon me when I needed you then? Because you DID hurt me with that” the younger elf took a step away from him. “You know what Námo punished me with?”

“Fëanáro…”

“I had to see how my pride hurt those I loved the most” he revealed, his face showing complete suffering. “It began with nothing, just loneliness in my own room in the Halls, a maddening one. I was beginning to wonder if eternal loneliness was going to be my punishment, but… then he brought Moryo… and Turko… and Curvo…” his tears began to fell on the table. “My babies… they were so destroyed… and it was my doing… all my fault…”

“Oh, my boy, I´m…”

“And then… then he announced that as my pride was too big to accept the councel of the Valar, I might as well not have use of their help. He said that I would have to heal those I loved and hurt the most… all by myself… without… without help of his maiar or himself” his face lowered even more. “I don´t know how long I stayed there, frozen, telling myself that I did that, it was my fault, only my fault…”

“Yonya…”

“I was hurting so much, but I put on a brave face and went to cradle my boys. They were the important ones there, not me… not the bastard that put them through so much” Fëanor said, lifting his head. “And I did. I put away my own pain and postpone my healing to help them. I had barely gotten a weak smile out of Turko when the Ambarussar arrived in an even more pitiful state.”

“Stop, son, you are hurting yourself”

“It was the point, no? Hurt me so I would know to lower my damn pride” answered the ranting smith. “I nearly broke and gave in to desperation. I can only repeat that it was all my fault, everything that hurt them my fault. Again, I swallowed it down and got hands to work. Their brothers helped me now. I started to believe it was going to be fine, but then… then Maitimo arrived. He was so… I believed I would never be able to put my poor boy together again, so I gave in to desperation. I broke down, atar, I truly broke down. That´s when Námo finally found some pity in him for me and gave me the option to call someone for help. Guess who?”

“Me”

“Exactly” tears continued flowing. “I thought that my beloved father, the one I loved so much and wanted to avenge, would be there to help me in my darkness. But you refused, atar, you refused to come to me. I begged and desperately called for you, to help me, and you refused to see me. Then I knew I was alone in that hell, so I wipped off my tears and reassumed work. Maybe I was never going to be able to get out of there, but my children… my boys were definitely going to exit. So I continued to heal them however I could...”

“And you?”

“When Námo deemed them fine enough to get out of his Halls, they decided to stay to help me. They are kind like that.”

“Yes, they are. You raised them well, despite what some people might say” Finwë and Fëanor stared at each other for a moment in silence. “I… I have to apologize, really. I didn´t know it was so bad a punishment. It was cruel.”

“It was what I deserved”

“No, no one deserved to see the suffering of his loved ones” he extended a hand again, but couldn´t touch him. “I… I´m sorry. I only wanted to avoid causing you pain. You see, I… I also had an experience like that.”

“Hummm”

“To call someone I loved and they wouldn´t let me see them” he breathed deeply in. “Your mother, Míriel… when I arrived to Mandos, I searched for her, but she wouldn´t receive me. No matter what I do, she refused to see me. I thought that perhaps she was upset with me because of what happened with you, so I… anyway, I didn´t want tolash out or blame you for my troubles and those feelings would probably get out if I met you then, so… I decided to keep myself away.”

“Oh, so you didn´t want to hurt me by lashing out? Thank you, atar, I´m so grateful. Too bad that it didn´t spare me the pain of being abandoned.”

“Fëanáro, I didn´t knew and your mother…”

“She abandoned me too, if you must know” Finwë widened his eyes. What? “Not when I was born, but after. Back in Mandos. The boys were already helping me when Námo asked me if I wanted to see anyone else to help me. I asked for my mother, but she refused to see me. I felt sick somehow… I didn´t even know I could do that as a fëa before Námo put me in that room” he rolled his eyes. “And then decided that it didn´t matter that I was abandoned by my parents. I had my boys, the joy of my life… and Nel… and my people…”

“Yonya, I…”

“Good day, atar” the smith said before fleeing the place. His father sighed, banging his head on the table. Why did he always have to screw up somehow? Way to go, Finwë.

“Well, that could have gone better” Nerdanel suddenly interrupted his self-pity fest with the confidence of someone that has been dealing with him for a few centuries. “Are you just going to stay there or are you going to follow your son and apologize?”

“It´s not so simple”

“Because I know what I will do if I were you and I had screwed up so badly with one of my boys” she continued, looking at him. “I would know exactly what to do if they have gone through that kind of hell alone and would do my best to be there for them.”

“Nel, he doesn´t want me there.”

“Do you know that he still has nightmares about that? About what happened to the boys, I mean” she crossed her arms. “Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night hearing him repeat that it was his fault. I do the best, but… I would appreciate the help.”

“If he wants to accept it, he will have my help.”

“It´s not about him wanting to accept it, it´s how you offer it” the redhead lifted an eyebrow. “Aren´t you tired of being ignored by him? You already know your son needs you. Besides, even if he didn´t, do you really want to keep things like this?”

“You know, dear” Finwë answered after a minute of silence. “Now I know why they call you the Wise.”

“It´s one of my talents” she said, unblocking the door. “He will be by the closest beach.”

“Will be back later then” the former High King went away, first fast, then more calm. And, just as his daughter-in-law said, there was Fëanáro, watching the waves. He looked utterly miserable. “Yonya…”

“Atar! I… I apologize for what I said earlier” he said, lowering his head. “It was unbecoming of me and irrespectful in the least.”

“No problem, you really needed to get that out of your system. Besides, no one could tell you I didn´t failed you then, not even me” the older elf approached, sitting down near him in the sand. “It´s a beautiful sight, I understand why you like it.”

“I don´t like it. It´s just… a reminder of everything I threw away back then” Fëanor kept his eyes on the water, which was a pretty shade of blue green. Anyone else would have treasured that view, specially if it was on their own lands, but… after his stay in Mandos, he was done with such things or pretty rocks. His sons smiles, Tyelpe laughing as he and Curufin worked around his forge, Celegorm galloping freely in the woods, Caranthir and the kids, Maedhros smiling down at Finno or baby Maeglin… those were the real treasures of his life. “I learned my lesson about not thinking with my pride. Námo is a good teacher.”

“More like a hard teacher” Finwë lowered his head. “Look, I believe we began with the wrong foot, specially after how I failed you back in Mandos, but I want you to know that I love you, yonya, and whenever you need me, just call me and I will be there. I won´t ignore it again.”

“Atar…”

“I´m sorry for making you and the boys feel abandoned, it was not my intention.” Suddenly the smith found himself embraced by his father, something he didn´t think he was going to experience again. He returned the gesture, holding the other tightly. “Oh, my son, I just wanted to avoid hurting you. It all backfired… much like my tries to bring you back to Tirion.”

“You wanted me to come back to Tirion?” asked the other, releasing him with a questioning look.

“Of course!! The family needs to be reunited” Fëanor rolled his eyes, thinking of his step mother and half siblings.   
“Don´t put that face, I made a great effort convincing Arafinwë to let you come on some festivities, so we all can be together.”

“Aye… I think I will pass” he announced. “If you haven´t noticed, me and those… they didn´t have the best of relationships. Especially after the Doom.”

“Come on, a dinner with your siblings is not going to kill you”

“If you convince Arafinwë to invite me, I will go” only for you was left without saying. “And, talking about families, do you want to see mine now that you are here? You haven’t seen all of the boys in a long time. And I have new grandchildren you have never met.”

“Oh, really? Finno only told me that Kanno wed, not that the others did” Finwë looked beyond himself with happiness, which made his son smile. “So, who are the lucky ellyt?”

“You would be surprised”

The both of them returned to the palace, where Nerdanel had already gathered the Feanorians. The former High King embraced each of them happily, commenting on how much he had missed them. He also shaked Daeron´s hands with respect, showing that he was more open minded than his fellow noldor. He didn´t show his deception when Tyelpe returned the ring he made for him, waiting instead until the younger elf finished his explanation about why he hated rings now. He even didn´t ask about Maeglin when he was introduced to him, knowing his grandchildren fairly well and understanding that the boy would be better with his adoptive parents rather than with Irissë. Hell, he was even allowed to meet Caranthir´s children, a pleasure no one outside of their borders have had.

“So, they are peredhil?” Finwë finally asked as he calmly sipped wine alone with the adult members of the family once the elflings finally when to sleep. Moryo only nodded in answer. “I can barely believe it, with how small they are. Did they have to Choose?”

“Yes, or at least that is what Námo told me when he handed them to me” Carnistir frowned. “He also told me that Haleth´s spirit was there when they Choose, so I believe she had something to do with they ending up here with me.”

“Of course, every mother would like the best for her children” Nerdanel said, leaving her cup aside. She admired Haleth for that, she really did. The edaneth was strong enough to say goodbye to her children, knowing that she won´t see them for a really long time, and sent them to Caranthir so they would have a life. She also showed a great trust in her husband… now she knew why her son was so paranoid with the kids. And why he choose her. “I would have like to…”

“Sorry to interrupt you, but I have something else to tell you” Fingon suddenly raised his voice, stopping the chitchat around himself. “Something important.”

“Well?” Fëanor said, attentive. “What is it?”

“It´s a plan deviced by my brother Turúkano and backed by grandmother Indis…”

By the end of the tale, Finwë was horrified. He was not the only one, of course, but… he couldn’t believe that one of his grandsons was plotting something so horrible or that his wife would condone the exclusion of hundredths of his own people, his own blood included. But Finno was sure and that was enough reason for him to cut his visit short.

-In Tirion-

“Are you two OUT OF YOUR MIND?!” Indis shuddered. None of her children have ever raised their voices to her, so this was a testament of how frustrated Arafinwë was with her and Turúkano. “You can´t just build a wall to forcesfully isolate a good porcion of the populations, it is simply not done.”

“They are not part of the…”

“Yes, Turno, they are. No matter their past crimes, they are still noldor elves and our steemed subjects. And a king must not only rule, but protect his subjects” he started rubbing his temple, a headache beginning to form. “At least news of your little plan didn´t arrive Fëanáro´s ears or we would have found him on his way here.”

“Talking about that, I might have mentioned the plan to Findékano when he was here” Turgon admitted, looking at the ground.

“GREAT!!” the High King practically screamed, feeling the need to beat his nephew. Fingon would surely tell Maedhros and this one, being the responsible loyal son would… “Now we are going to have him on our doors any second.”

The sound of doors opening was so forebonding that he nearly cried. Fortunately for him, the one that entered the place was not his half brother, but his father. The relaxing aura of Finwë calmed him a little bit, as he always had a wise councel to lend him. But the former High King didn´t seem to be in the mood to share wisdom.

“Dear, where were you? I missed you at breakfast” Indis said.

“I was visiting Formenos” all the people in the room was frozen by those words. Formenos? What was he doing there? “Why are you so surprised? My son and grandchildren live there, of course I would visit from time to time.”

“But… but you haven´t done that in millenia” said Finarfin, trying to make sense of the situation. “I mean… we all believed you have finally disowned him after everything that happened.”

“Arafinwë, yonya, you are my son and I love you, but if you ever say the word disowned followed by one of your siblings´ names, the disowned one is going to be you” Finwë threatened before turning to his wife. “And, dear wife, I want to clarify something. Is it true that you once refered to my eldest son early in our marriage as a wretched brat that was going to get himself cursed by the Valar?”

“I…” the blond woman couldn´t answer for a few seconds. “In my defence, he did”

“I see” Finwë continued. He was being unfair to her, he knew, as she had done her best to form a relationship with Fëanor back at the begins of their marriage, but Fëanor could be impossible sometimes. Specially to her. But he also had to make a point, now that she was really attempting against his wellbeing. “And you called his sons no good creatures of a madman?”

“In her defence, they are” Turgon said quickly. “They…”

“Don´t” he lifted a finger, effectively shutting him up. “I know about your little Wall, Turno, and I will tell you now that I will make everything in my power to stop it. And I will not stop at that, but also will to have my son back here in Tirion.”

“WHAT?!” Arafinwë jumped from his Throne. “Atar, you can´t just bring kinslayers into the city, the people won´t accept that!! I can´t allow that!!”

“Arafinwë, yonya” oh, those words always render him defenceless. “Don´t underestimate me”

A cold silence descended over the room as the ancient elf left it. Finarfin collapsed on his seat, mumbling about meddling fathers and Fëanor and headaches. Earwën approached him, beginning to massage his temples, making him lean on her, whinning. The queen, for her part, eyed the door her father in law exited from with interest. Seems like time to make another ally in court.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Finwë and Fëanor made up. Or more, because now our dear first High King is decided to bring the Feanorians back to Tirion and stop Turgon´s project... not that they need his help, they have enough geniality to think about a way to give Turgon hell even if he achieves to build the damn thing. Well, hope you liked the chapter. Review!!


	17. Chapter 17

“Muino, what are you doing?” Rátissë asked when she saw her brother trying to quietly escape the house. He turned around, busted, and looked down. Then something came to his mind.

“What are YOU doing here?” he said, letting go of the door. His sister moved around uncomfortable before answering. Big surprise that she had the same motivation as him. and half their elfling friends.

“I wanted to go to uncle Turko´s house” she said, pouting. “He said that he was going to take us ridding, to teach us a few things of the forest, so we could attend the next hunting. And atar wasn´t going to let me, he would just throw a tantrum…”

“I know” the peredhil looked at each other for a second. “I won´t tell him if you don´t”

“Deal” they made a pinky promise before quietly exiting their house in the middle of the night. Muino hoped that his sister had remembered to put some sleeping draught in their atar´s tea last night, because if Caranthir even got a wift that they were escaping the house at night… he suddered at what his reaction would be. So he decided to waste no time arguing with his sister and escape.

Surprisingly, the two peredhil were not the only elflings in that situation, as Celegorm have made the proposition when there was a nice big group of them playing. And they all wanted to learn to hunt… all except one. But he couldn´t say that, they would all made fun of him for being a crybaby… which in turn landed Maeglin in this situation. He wondered for the last time as he excited his parents house if he couldn´t just ran inside and say he was sick. 

“What a stupid idea, elves don´t get sick” he reminded himself, sighing. “Come on, Maeglin, you are eleven years old. You are not a baby anymore.”

His words of encouragement were not enough to convince him when he saw the ponies and horses his uncle Tyelkormo prepared for the ride. He wondered if that was not a good moment to turn around and go back to bed like a good elfling should, but… all of his friends were there. And there was no way he was going to chicken out in front of Rátissë, not when she had teased him mercilessly after finding out his fear of heights. He ended up getting on his pony and… and trying to put a happy face while they rode through the woods. Oh, could someone take him back to his nice bed and even nicer forge?

Turkafinwë, for his part, kept an eye on his nephew. He hasn´t been allowed to bring him with him on hunts since he was a baby. And with a reason. A few minutes into the ride, he came to the conclusion that the youngster was afraid of woods. Perhaps partially due him (face it, more than half that trauma must belong to Aredhel and her ex´s uselessness at childrearing, even if the elfling didn´t remember it), so he felt guilty and went slow. Maeglin was calmed down by it somehow, so it was worth it.

Suddenly he ordered a stop, putting on a serious face.

“Is there something the matter, Prince Turkafinwë?” asked one of his servants. He was not stupid, he knew there was no way he could keep so many elflings under control by himself, so be brought some.

“No, I think I heard something” the blond answered. “I´m going to investigate, on my own. Please take the children to the cabin as we planned”

“But, herunya…”

“It´s probably nothing, there is no need for backup” he said before spurring his horse and shotting through the woods at his full speed. The fastest, the better.

As soon as he was out of view, Celegorm gracefully jumped from the animal into a tree. His steed continued in the mad dash, following his orders, so the blond hid in the foliage. As he said before, he was far from stupid. He knew what footsteps sounded like. Specially when they have been splitting branches all the way following a party. The Feanorian also prided himself as an amazing hunter (one had to be to catch Oromë´s attention), so he was familiar with a amateur predator stalking a prey. And how to outfox them. Amateurs were the easiest, he thought with a smile. And this idiots didn´t even know that they had to keep their mouths shut during a hunt. Piece of cake, he thought as he hid between the leaves.

“Piece of shit!!” one of them yelled with a distinctive Sindarin accent. Pretty much like the one Daeron had. “Did you have to break all those twights, Belchanar?!”

“As if you are a quiet fox, Raevion!!!”

“Can you two SHUT THE FUCK UP?!” a third voice was heard, surprisingly female. “You were making enough of a noice for him to notice us before. One more sound and he is going to know that we are on his track.” 

“I don´t know why you bother, Forvenien” another male asked. “He probably already knows he is the target. Why to part with the others if not?”

“That’s actually relieving, I was not looking towards hurting children” Belchanar said, sighing.

“Hummm, I don´t know why you are so sensible about that. The kinslayers didn´t respect the lives of our children, why should we do that for theirs?”

“Wait, Forvenien” the fourth member stopped her death in her tracks. “Were you really going to attack the elflings?” she didn´t answered, which angered her companions. “Dammit, woman, they were kids!! Their parents might be culprit, but they are innocent!!”

“So what? They are children of kinslayers.”

“We don´t hurt children!!”

“You mightn´t, but I will, Maedor” she said. “I will do whatever it takes to make them pay”

Celegorm grabbed his knife. Those inepts were harmless, he was sure of that, but the woman… while not a skilled huntress, the woman was dangerous. And motivated by something. Maybe even a personal loss in one of the kinslayings. He needed to stop her before she could hurt someone. He prepared to jump, ready to surprise them from behind and incapacitate…

BAM!! A thick tree branch suddenly broke just over the failures of hunters, effectively knocking and pinning them down to the floor. Celegorm, surprised, got down to look at them, to make sure they were incapacitated when…

“You were taking too long” Oromë appeared right behind him when he was doing that, his arms encircling him, his mouth searching in his neck. Grunting, he tried to get the Vala away from him. What was the Hunter doing there anyway? They had been together less than a month ago, it usually took longer for Oromë to get the itch again.   
“Don´t fight.”

“Get away, someone could see”

“Since when that has bothered you?” Celegorm rolled his eyes. This was not his secluded backyard, where they were away from prying eyes and the risk of exposure was controlled. This was the middle of the fucking woods!! “Keep quiet if you don´t want to wake them up.”

“Wait”   
Just as Oromë was ripped his clothes off, Forvenien decided to crack an eye open. Her vision was blury because of the hit she took, but she could clearly see the Feanorian on his hands and knees with someone bitting his neck, making him moan, scratching his chest and pulling on his braids. Wait a minute, was that…

-Some time before-

When he first woke up, Caranthir couldn´t see anything wrong. Yes, he woke up a little bit later than usual, but that was nothing to worry about. He had drank a lot of tea the night before and that particular kind of tea always made him drowsy… anyway, he yawned as he finally got out of his comfy bed and went to woke up his kids. He entered Muino´s room and… there was no one there. Feeling dread rising on his chest, he ran to his daughter´s chambers and opened it, finding the same. Screaming their names, he searched the whole house. Nothing. Nothing at all.

“Where are my children?!!” he yelled when the servants finally exhausted the places where they could search in the mansion. Finally, a trembling boy approached with a note that was left in the little lady´s desk. 

“They… they went to ride in the woods with your brother, herunya”

“With my brother? What…” now that was an imbecilic question? “TURKO!!!!”

His scream could be heard in all Formenos. His next reaction was more exaggerated as he, still in his sleeping robes, got into his horse and galloped into the woods. When he saw Celegorm again, he was going to…

Woow, Moryo, calm down a bit. You are going to burst a vein or ten.

The voice of Haleth echoed in his mind as he rode through the city, bringing back so many memories. Meeting her in Thargelion, helping her to reach safety in Thingol´s lands, falling in love, wedding her, the birth of first Munio and then Rátissë… losing them so young when an orc attack in the lands of the Haladrim robbed him of his family. They were so tiny then and their corpses… oh, their corpses. He remembered the images of that day as if it was yesterday: His wife in a puddle of her own blood, still trying to shield the pair of children that has been slaughtered not two meters behind her. He remembered his screams… because he had arrived too late… to late to save them… too late to… too late… Haldan dragging him away as he screamed like a madman and knocking him out when he failed to calm him down. He remembered waking up with a hole where his heart was supposed to be and the numbness that didn´t left him ever since then. Not even when he marched to Doriath to find death at the hands of one of Dior´s captains.

But death didn´t soothe his pain. Since Námo decided to leave their healing to themselves and a heavily traumatized Fëanor (who was making a good job keeping his face straight, but Caranthir caught him sometimes repeating that it was all his fault in his sleep), it took them a long time to be well enough to return to Aman. He didn´t know how he did it, but… he still had family out there. He would carry the hole in his heart where Haleth and the children were forever, but he would learn to carry on. But, then again, destiny had a way to torture him. He hadn´t spent a whole minute outside the Halls when they opened again. For a second the Feanorians feared that would be drag back, but it was Námo who exited. With two children.

“I believe this is yours” the Vala said, letting them go. The two little peredhil ran to him, colliding with his body and hugging him around the waist. His arms automatically were placed around them. He couldn´t believe it. “They chose elvendom and didn´t want to leave without you. They are your problem now.”

He couldn´t have been happier than there… or maybe only if Haleth was also restored to him. Unfortunately, he couldn´t have everything. But, for a whole half hour, he actually believed that everything was going to be alright. His bubble blew up when he saw the carriage Tyelpe and Elrond have gotten to move them. Covered, armoured and heavily guarded, the thing looked more like a prisoner transport than anything. And he was soon going to find out why. During their ride through Tirion to his childhood home, he found a peeping hole and watched the outside. People stopped when they saw the thing to glare at them. Caranthir´s felt a chill crawling through his back. They had not been forgotten. Or forgiven. Oh, Eru, the elves were still out for kinslayer´s blood.   
He should have felt save in the house, but it was not the case. He and his children were accommodated in his old room, which had been cleaned and prepared for the ocation, but it didn´t soothe any of his anxieties. He slept with the children close to his chest, opening his eyes every two minutes. His dreams were haunted with memories of his murdered family, but this time the attackers were elves, not orcs. Elves wanting his blood. And the time he dared to sleep a whole night… he woke up to find the peredhil gone. He screamed and made a scandal, waking up everyone in the house, only to find out that they were thirsty and had gone to the kitchen for a glass of milk. The time when someone shot arrows through the window was the final drop for everyone, as the next day Fëanor declared that they were all moving to Formenos by the end of the week. He knew that his own reaction to the arrows wasn´t the only cause (he grabbed his kids and fled to his room, not getting out for anything in two days), but Amabarussa heard Fëanor and Nerdanel talking that same day (actually talking, like back in the Age of the Trees, when everything in their marriage was alright) and actually agreeing that it was for the better. For everyone peace of mind, specially his own. 

He didn´t know when he was able to finally sleep in separate rooms of his children, only that it took months of feeling safe among people like them. And his own mansion, of course. Kind of a gift from his men, with the same style of Thargelion. One even made a full body portrait of Haleth for him… it might have helped a bit. Having her close somewhat helped. He was still paranoid, yes, but he managed to, little by little, let the children have their space and privacy. He was struggling… but now Celegorm threatened to level down all the progress he had made!! And not only that, the stupid blond he had for a brother might even kill his children!! Just fucking great!!  
He arrived in the woods, ready to give the idiot a piece of his mind, when he noticed the tracks diverted. The Feanorian frowned, Tyelkormo liked to take risks, but not even him would leave elflings on their own. Besides, the tracks that diverted were for only one horse, so one of the members of the party separated… it must be Celegorm himself. But, at the same time, he wouldn´t have gone lonely if there weren´t… his heart clenched and he followed the lone rider. Galloped at fast speed until he reached a place with big trees. There were four sindar under a big branch, unconscious on the floor. His eyes widened and he felt a yell exiting his throat for his brother…

“What are you doing here? And like that?” the blond in question suddenly got out of the shadow of a tree with hunter clothes, uncomfortable… why was he uncomfortable? His wardrobe was nearly exclusively made of hunter attires. His braids were also a mess, with loose strands everywhere, as if someone had pulled his hair. Oh, Valar…

“Turko, I swear if you came here only to lay in the woods with one of your lovers…”

“Of course not!! How can you think something like that about me?!!” the other asked, clearly offended. Caranthir rolled his eyes, but conceded. Not even Celegorm would bring a lover while being in charge of a lot of elflings. “If you must know, I diverted from the party to hunt this idiots” he signalled the elves under the branch. “They hunted themselves before I even moved from that tree.”

“I see”

“So… why are you ridding around in your piyamas?”

“You stole my children, what was I supposed to do? Let you endanger them?” he shook his head. “Anyway, we should call the guards. Atar and Ammë would like to talk to them.”

“Ehhhh, do we need to call them?” he asked, looking away. “We already know this clowns were sent by Thingol or the reward on our heads lured them here…”

“They still should be interrogated” Moryo put the hammer down, making his brother sigh. Well, as long as no one takes into account that… “Get your horse, we need to ride for the children and back to the city.”

Dammit! This was going to hurt.

-A few hours later-

“Can you please explain to me what the fuck were you doing outside of the city with children and such a small party of guards?” Fëanor asked his third son, this one shrugged, mumbling that those elflings needed to learn how to ride. “Oh, how good of you to offer yourself for that job. How about we make you the official ridding instructor in the city?”

“Wait what?” he looked at his mother for support, but she only agreed with her husband, saying that it was time their son took more responsibilities. Shit! When they were united against someone, nothing could get in their way. He better resigned himself to pass his next few years teaching some bratty elflings to ride their damn ponies.

“That´s what you deserve” Caranthir said, now fully dressed. As always, he wore black mourning clothes. He had made a habit of that since his wife died… not that his taste in clothes changed much because of that. “Atar, the intruders…”

“Doriathrim in search for Feanorian blood” the Lord of Formenos answered, his eyes darkening. “One of them, the nís, was very vocal about that. She apparently was the only survivor of her family from the kinslaying of Doriath.”

“Ahhh” was the only thing Celegorm could say. “That explains it”

“For now I´m going to put the whole city on isolation, no one entering or getting out. Tomorrow… we will see” Fëanáro said, dispatching his guards. “I will also send a letter to my father, to ask him if he could intercede before Elu Thingol for us. It would be very relaxing if he could stop sending idiots to hunt us.”

“Yes…” Celegorm was not sure his grandfather could do much, but he kept that to himself. He left Caranthir discussing with his parents the accomodations of their new prisoners and went down to the dungeons. He needed to know if one of those idiots have seen… something. He interrogated each of them until he found the woman.

“If you are talking about me seeing you moaning like a whore for a married Vala, then yes, I saw something” Forvenien answered, showing her teeth at the kinslayer. The blond just raised an eyebrow. “I guess it shouldn´t surprise me, how else would have your family gotten out of Mandos? Tell me, with how many Ainur did you sleep with to get them out?”

“It´s that all you have to say?” asked the Feanorian. “Have heard worse”

“Whatever, slut” Tyelkormo shrugged her insults. It was not the first time he has been called a whore or worse, besides, considering the amount of sexual partners he usually had… well, as long as she didn´t mention Oromë being in his bed to his parents, he was okay. “I was going to do it.”

“What?”

“I was going to kill those children. So the kinslayers would feel what I felt when you came and murdered my own. I was prepared to…”

“Then you were going to be worse than us. Kinslayer and child slayer… what would the Vala do with you?” he asked. “Tell me, weren´t your children returned to you?”

“Yes, but so would those…”

“Why using your time to get revenge instead of with them?” the woman´s eyes widened. “Why indeed? Now you are going to lose a long time with them here, not being able to recover it. You are going to lose a long time…” much like him when he left Valinor for the wrong reasons. “Anyway, I will leave you to think about it. We might not see each other again.”

He left her, sure that she wouldn´t open her mouth about his affair with Oromë. She, after all, had better things to think about. And she thought that his parents already knew, so why mention it. He walked to his house, confident that everything was going to remain secret and desiring to add something to his uncomfortable attire… only to suddenly being thrown over someone´s shoulder and dragged to his private him. He kicked and fought, trying to remain silent as to not startle anyone who might recognize the yellow eyed being currently carryin him.

“We didn´t finish our business in the wood” the Ainur said, throwing him into the grass…

A week after that, Celegorm finally excited from his mansion, grumbling under his breath against the damn ainur stamina and promising never to get out without underwear again. It gave Oromë too many funny ideas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anddddd... another chapter ended!! Poor Maeglin, have you heard about peer pressure? And being afraid of woods and heights... that didn´t have anything to do with his other live. Or it might? But don´t worry, he won´t be recovering any memories in this fic. 
> 
> Anyone wondered why Caranthir was such a paranoid? Well, here is the answer!! And Celegorm... the bold hunter should really be more responsible. And carry complete spare outfits during his trips. What do you think? Review!!!


	18. Chapter 18

“Yonya, you scared us today. What were you thinking?” Fingon asked when he finally had his eleven years old son on his home, sitting down in a seat while he and his husband take the couch. Maedhros looked severe with his arms crossed and stern expression. The child, for his part, only looked to the ground in silence. “Maeglin, are you listening to me? You can´t just disappear in the middle of the night…”

“My friends told me they were going to do it” the little boy answered, pouting. “They were so excited and I couldn´t say no” the elfling began to babble, trying to explain himself. “Rátissë said it was going to be fun, the other agreed with her.”

“Is that a justification?” Maitimo entered the conversation in that moment, playing the disappointed parent. Finno looked at him with a warning expression, but didn´t stop him. “And next time your friends say something is fun, are you going to do the same? If they throw themselves from a cliff, are you going to do the same?” the boy mumbled something. “Answer, child.”

“I´m sorry”

“You are sorry? You are sorry?” the redhead continued, being a little bit forecessful with poor Lómion. “You should be. You gave your atar and me a heart attack. When we woke up and saw that you weren´t there…”

“Nelyo, he already said he is sorry” his husband tried to help.

“Finno, he needs to know he has done something bad and there are going to be consequences. You know that. Or are you going to let him go unpunished after that stunt he just put?”

“Of course not, but there is not need to be so severe to him.”

“I want him to learn, do you?” the Feanorian got up and walked out of the room. Maeglin watched the scene in amazement. He knew his parents some times had disagreements, even fights, but he had never witness one. And this argument was his fault, because he was such a bad boy. It brought tears to his eyes. Fingon noticed this and quickly went to his son´s aid.

“Oh, yonya, don´t worry. He didn´t want to be so mean…” 

“It´s… it´s not that” the little mole answered as his father wipped away his tears. “I… I made you fight. I shouldn´t have done that, I hate that…”

“Son, that wasn´t a fight” Findékano assured him, smiling sadly. “It was a tiny winy disagreement. Happens all the time.”

“But I don’t want to!” Maeglin finally exploded into tears. “I don´t want to see you argue or fight, you are a happy couple!! And I ruined everything” he continued crying while his atar rubbed his back. “Why did I even go out? I didn´t want to go to that stupid forest!! Besides, I hate hunting!!”

“Yes, but… it´s difficult to say no to your friends” the older elf said, rolling his eyes. “Or to others from your surrounding. Specially if they are loved ones or friends” he patted his head. “It´s called peer preassure.”

“Peer preassure?”

“Yes, exactly that” the former High King said. “And Maitimo and me… we are just worried, because peer preassure can make you do things that aren´t that good.”

“Did that happen to you? Or that you didn´t want?”

Fingon bit his lip before answering. Did peer preassure made him do things that weren´t good? Or that he didn´t want? He examinated the First Age events that could be considered the group coercing him into doing something. Like his Atar and the council preassuring him into a marriage with some elf woman, any elf woman that could give him a son. The same one broke Maedhros heart, something he definitely didn´t want, so that counted too. There was the cheating he did on Lintë and knowingly deceiving Ereinion all his life, making him believe that he loves his mother, that he was heterosexual because that was what the council expected of him… and many more. 

“Yes, it did” he admitted. “Peer preassure got me sometimes when I was younger. Not as young as you, but… younger. And stupidier” the elf sighed. “The thing is, yonya, that I don´t want you to commit the same mistakes as me. Nor does your atya. Others might want to do something, but you also have to think before you act and decide if that´s really the best. You understand me?”

“Yes” the elfling nodded. 

“Good that we solved this” Fingon said, getting up from the couch. “Now, I have to talk with your father. Go to your room and stay there until I said you can go.”

“It´s not going to be a punishment there?”

“Nice try, little one. But, as atya said, actions have consequences you have to face sooner or later” he pattet his head. “Be nice while I try to convince him not to be so hard on you, alright? And don´t get out of the room”

“Awwww” Maeglin jumped from the couch and did what he was told. Sighning and somewhat content, Fingon went towards his own room to talk to his husband.

Saying that Maitimo was only being so hard on the kid just because he was mean would be a mistake and they both knew it. Peer preassure was something they both knew very well. In fact, it was what drove them apart in their former life. And more. The council trying to force Fingon into a marriage and everybody saying a kinslayer like Maedhros didn´t deserve to be happy… and the judging stares he had to endure after that. Before that, the Oath… he and Maglor weren´t so sure it was a good idea, but the rest of their siblings did and they went with the flow. He should have said something…

“Are you okay?” asked the Fingolfinion when he arrived to the room to find the redhead lying on the bed, sprawled. “Look, I shouldn´t have cut you down like that, but you were being mean to him…”

“I wasn´t being so hard just for acting mean” he began, looking at his pillow. “I just wanted him to understand that he had to think before following the others.”

“I know, my love, but… he is still an elfling. He is going to make mistakes”

“Yes” he turned around to look at him. “I just want to make sure they are not so great, so he doesn´t have to face consequences for the rest of his life. That he is strong enough to refuse even when the rest of us are being idiots.”

“Basically, not commiting our same mistakes”

“More like MY mistakes…”

“And don´t you think I have enough experience with peer preassure? I MARRIED a woman I don´t feel attraction to and will never just because the council said that I had to do it. I don´t mind Ereinion, but… deceiving and cheating on Lintë didn´t feel good.”

“They are better than MY mistakes still”

“Touché” they sat down next to each other, silent for a few minutes, just reflexing on the past. “We were such stupid youths, no?”

“Indeed” they sighed. “You know, I wasn´t going to be so bad after the initial lecture. I mean… it´s not like he knew there was going to be a hunting party of crazy sindar following them, but he needed to understand that sometimes you have to say no to your friends.” He noticed Findékano looking at him in a particular way after this statement. “In very specific situations.”

“Yes, peer preassure can be a bitch, but… can´t you say that it also worked well for you sometimes?”

“I don´t know what you are talking about” the redhead said, looking away with a blush.

“Yes, you do” the raven continued, smiling wickedly. “Like when, I don´t know, your friends compelled you to drink enough wine at a party to confess that you also felt a bit of attraction for a certain half-cousin of yours. And then kiss him behind one fo your mother´s statues of Varda…”

“That´s a very specific scenario and I needed some liquid courage to admit that your clumsy attempts at courtship were actually paying off…”

“Or when we were escaping from Angband, your wound barely stopping bleeding, and you accepted to have one fo the best afternoons of your life with that cousin, celebrating your newly recovered freedom in a mostly pleasurable way.”

“You were only one person!! That doesn´t count like peer preassure!!” he said, as red as his hair when he remembered the things they have done behind the bushes of the road, very between hearing distance of an eagle.

“Wrong! Thorondor was also there. And he told you to accept my proposition, don´t you remember?” Maitimo covered his face with a pillow, mumbling something about gossiping eagles and their taste for torrid afairs. “Aww, don´t worry. He didn´t told many elves until we made our relationship public.”

“Dammit, he didn´t kept his beak shut?! How embarrassing…” Fingon laughed at his expression of shame, which in turn was enough to coax a smile out of Maedhros. “Leaving that aside, isn´t it time for us to announce the veredict and sentence to the accused?”

“Is this a trial now?” Finno asked, raising an eyebrow. “Well, how about we take his forge priviledges for the rest of the year? I´m sorry for him, he loves working with your father, but rules are rules and he have to learn.”

“I completely agree with you” the redhead said, sighing. “But he is going to have a lot of time in his hands if we call off his smith training for the rest of the year” he rubbed his chin. “How about we changed it for ridding lessons? I wouldn´t give Celegorm much credit in anything, but he had it right when he said the elflings needed more horse training.”

“As long as he is inside the city, I don´t have objections” the raven nodded, lying on the bed by his husband´s side, the argument completely forgotten in favour of happier themes. “You know, I have been thinking about getting another one…”

“Not until Maeglin is at least thirty” Maedhros said quickly. “Believe me, you don´t want to have too many children too quickly. Atto and Ammë nearly went mad because of that. Dealing with me, Makalaurë, Tyelkormo and Moryo at the same time was a trial on it´s own. And let´s not talk about when Curufin arrived.”

“Hummmm… is that why you don´t want seven kids?”

“I believe it´s excesive, but still want a big family. Growing up with a lot of siblings have some appeal” the redhead shrugged. “Five sounds great, as long as they have a decent amount of years between them.”

“You know that with Elrond and Elros that would make seven, no?”

“That should effectively shut my atar up then”

-A few days later-

“You have to take the reins like this” Celegorm corrected the way Maeglin was taking the things before letting him join the other elflings in the practice course. The child nodded, happy now that he wasn´t in a wood. He still didn´t like that his forging apprenticeship was temporarily suspended, but ridding wasn´t that bad… as long as he was nice and safe inside the city.

“This is a surprise. I was expecting to find you in the forge!!” someone caught the attention of the children reunited there. The little prince smiled when he saw the person.

“Toron!!” he rode carefully towards Gil Galad, who approached quickly.

“Hello, little mole” the former High King said, patting his head. “You have grown up so much since I last saw you.”

“That was a month ago”

“So long? I should visit more then. Can´t miss my little brother´s life, no?” in fact, Gil Galad had at least two half siblings besides Lómion, but the kid was a particular favorite of him. Specially because the others weren´t particularly close to him. “So ridding clases, eh? You have begun younger than me. But then again, Fallas was a portuary city…”

“It´s a punishment” the elfling said, looking down.

“What? Why?”

“They exchange my forging lessons for ridding lessons” Ereinion kept looking at him as if he was crazy. “You see, I got out of home in the middle of the night to go hunting with my friends and uncle Turko…”

“Don´t go on, I get it” the older elf said, rolling his eyes. What a great idea! If only he had done something like that in his youth. He would have had so much fun!! And Círdan would have had his head, but that was another thing. “You have a lot of guts, little one. But they must have been so scared.”

“They were” Maeglin bit his lower lip. “There was a party of crazy sindar hunting us.”

“Yes, it could… WHAT?!” the nér screamed, catching the attention of all the teachers and students at the ridding classes. He knew he would have a lot to catch up with when he visited Formenos after so much time, but… not this. The former High King apologized to the class and took his brother away. “Tell me everything”

The eldest listened carefully as Maeglin did a recount of the events of that morning. How he escaped home, scaring Findékano and Maitimo enough that they briefly fought over his punishment (the child probably was exaggerating, those two were too much in love to fight over anything) (they probably weren´t as scared as Caranthir, either); how they were ridding through scary woods and uncle Celegorm separated from the group after he heard someone trailing them; how he found out lately that there was a group of sinda hunters after them, one of their members even confessing that she was willing to murder the children only to get even with their kinslaying parents…

“Dammit, Thingol” he covered his mouth when he realised that he just cursed in front of a little kid that admired him and was prone to repeat everything he said. Shit. “Don´t repeat that in front of your parents. Maitimo would skin me alive if you do.”

“Promised!!”

“And don´t worry about your parents, they will come around” he got up. “You know, I will go talk to them right now. Surely I can convince them not to be so hard on you.”

“Really?”

“Really!! Leave everything to your toron!” with that, Gil Galad disappeared in a whirlwind of air. He ran towards his father´s house, knocking hardly on the door. Fingon opened it with a confused look.

“Ereinion, what a surprise!!” he said, letting him enter. “We weren´t expecting you until Maeglin´s begetting day.”

“Just arrived” the younger Fingolfinian walked in, setting himself comfortably on the couch before continuing.   
“Talked to him on the ridding ground, by the way. He told me something about… about the incident you wrote about last week.”

“What… oh, you meant Maeglin´s little hunting adventure” Findékano understood. “Did he convince you to intercede for him with his puppy dog eyes?” a servant came with a bottle of wine and two cups, placing them next to the owner of the house. He poured the two, handing one to his son, but none of them drank anything. “You are not going to convince Maitimo”

“And you?”

“For the fright he gave us, he deserved it” he left his cup to the side. “So, are you…” there was a knock on the door. “One second” Fingon went to answer the door. He returned to the living room with Fëanor and Finwë, who had also read about the incident in a letter. “Apparently you are not the only one who heard about the incident.”

“Of course not” the lord of Formenos said, grabbing Ereinion´s cup and drowning it. “Atar and I write to each other a lot” he rolled his eyes. “He thinks I´m exaggerating.”

“Yonya, I know Elwë really well. He is my friend, has been for many years” the oldest elf began. “He can be prideful and forcesful, yes, and also a little bit exaggerate, but he won´t do any harm to you or the kids.”

“He sent a murderer here” Fëanor answered. "One that wanted to harm children"

“He probably didn´t know she had such dangerous tendencies!” retorted his father, crossing his arms. 

“Or he is just a damn hateful idiot with a superiority complex” the smith lifted himself from the couch and left towards the door, probably to find someone to talk until his father had seen reason. Preferably Maedhros or Nerdanel.

“Sometimes I believe this much isolation is not doing him any favours. Maybe if he came back to Tirion with…” there was a crash on the other room. The elves in the living room ran towards it only to find the fourth lying on the floor, unconscious. “What…”

“Don´t worry about that, get him on the couch” ordered Fingon, helping his son move Fëanáro out of the door´s way. Just in time, because Maitimo and Tyelkormo arrived that moment, carrying a relieved Maeglin. Their eyes widened when they saw their father lying on the living room, very pale and in obvious distress. The redhead quickly handed his son to the servants and went to care for his father.

“What happened?” he asked.

“I don´t know, he was having an argument with grandfather and… and drank some of the wine” his husband began explaining. The blond Feanorian, for his part, grabbed the cup and sniffled it. He then let a few drops fall on his hand and did the same. 

“This is poisoned. Someone tampered with your wine reservoir” Celegorm announced. Everybody believed him immediately. After all, every hunter of Oromë was well versed in the arts of natural toxins. “No one drinks anything else until I have checked all of your collection and sent someone you trust in to investigate who accesed the wine cellar. NOW, Findékano!!” the mentioned elf ran away to don as he was told. “Maitimo, go to the damn palantir and call for Elrond. I know how to make a general antidote that will work for now, but he needs specialized help to be completely healed.”

“Right away”

“Gil Galad… do you know something about herbs?”

“I… know how to make tea?”

“It´s worth something, I guess” the blond said, grabbing the other nér. “You will help me in making the antidote” he turned to the last person in the room. “Grandfather…”

“I won´t move from his side, not now” the first High King answered, sounding truly desperate. As any father with a child in such a situation. “I know that won´t be of much help…”

“No, keep doing that” Celegorm continued, grabbing the bottle. “The smell of that wine… I´m not sure, but if it´s what I think, this toxin could cause a cardiac respiratory arrest, even in an elvish body. Do you know CPR?” the other nodded. “If he stops breathing, do it.”

Turko and Gil Galad then ran to the infirmary, with the hunter grabbing everything he needed. The Fingolfinian was left in charge of the extraction system while his companion made a mush of berries. In the middle of the rush to prepare the antidote, they didn´t notice Maedhros poking his head into the kitchen.

“Elrond is on his way as fast as he could” the redhead informed. “I also called Caranthir so he shut down the ports and search all the wine cellars.”

“Great” Celegorm said, adding some seeds to the mush. He blocked the thoughts about all the family´s cellars being contaminated with that toxin too, he needed his wits about him to save his father. By his side, Gil Galad grabbed the extract and handed it to the blonf, who poured it on the mush. “Once I have finished sincronizing this…”

“Turko!!! He stopped breathing!!” Finwë´s scream made them all work faster. They ran to the living room, where their frantic grandfather was trying to resuscitate his son pressing on his chest and shuffling air to his lungs. 

“Open his mouth” he did and the blond poured the thick mush down his throat. After a few more compresions, Fëanor finally breathed again. It made them all feel better. Less… histerical. “This should prevent more episodes, but… won´t last long. He needs a healer.” 

“Elrond is on his way…” the redhead said.

“I know, I know, but…”

“How is he?” Caranthir appeared in that moment, entering the house as if it was his. “Did what you told me, Nelyo. There happens to be adultered wine in all of the family´s cellars. Someone injected the toxin into the bottles… a servant.”

“Did you catch him?” Maedhros asked from his seat near the couch. The black clad figure nodded, making the other sigh. “I will go to interrogate him later”

\- A few days after –

“What…”

“You have just recovered from a poisoning” Elrond informed Fëanor, removing the wet rags from his forehead. “You drank wine that was injected with some kind of poison by a sinda servant infiltrated in our households” the peredhel completed, angry. He meant… did those would be assasins didn´t think who they could poison? There were children in those houses! “You have been unconscious for two days.”

“Nerdanel…”

“I´m here” the elf woman walked towards her husband. “Your father…”

“Yonya” Finwë approached his son and embraced him in his arms, holding him tightly against his body. Fëanor let him, despite being clearly too old for that. He had been, after all, unconscious for days, which must have scared the older elf a lot. Finwë, for his part, was less interested in his own feelings and more on his child. After seeing him pale and sickly in a bed, mumbling that it was his fault in his sleep, he only wanted to have him in his arms. And punish whoever did this. “Tyelkormo”

“Yes, grandfather?” the blond said when the other talked to him in the hallway. 

“I want to see the prisoner” the Feanorian raised an eyebrow. He wasn´t sure it was a good idea, his grandfather was too affected by his father´s poisoning to think clearly, but at the same time… it could finally open his eyes.  
And he was right. By the time Finwë finally left the dungeons, he had a mission. A mission that was going to put him against one of his dearest friends. But for his child and grandchildren he would kill and it was time Elwë was made aware of that.

\- In another room –

“Is he going to be alright?” asked a fearful Maeglin. Maitimo patted his back, comforting him. The elfling has never been in such a close contact with death in this life and had a right to be terrified. It was also his duty as the parent to calm him down.

“Danger is already over, thanks to Elrond. He is going to have to keep to bed for a few days to recover his strength, but more than that… your brother says he will make a full recovery” his son´s tear filled eyes looked up at him. “Look, what is important is that he will be alright, okay? And that nothing happened to the family. From now on we will just have to be careful.”

“But… but…”

“Really, you have nothing to fear. Me, your atto, your uncles and grandparents will make sure this never happens again. Understood?”

“Understood” the child nodded.

“On another page… Finno and I decided we were a little bit hard on you because of that early morning escapade of yours” the redhead started. It was not true, but after the scare he suffered anything that comforts Maeglin will be okay for him. “So, we decided that you can rejoin your forging lessons after Yuletide.”

“Really?!” now the elfling was excited.

“It doesn´t mean you won´t have ridding lessons, they will be rescheduled” he clarified, lifting a finger. “And if you break the rules once more the punishment will come back. But yes, you will. It´s my Yuletime gift for you.”

“Thank you, atya!!”

“You are welcome, but remember what I said, alright?” the kid nodded happily. “Now go visit your grandfather before Issë and Muino get here.” The elfling dashed to the door, wanting to tell Fëanor about him reassuming his apprenticeship at the forge. Maitimo shook his head. “Children… so energetic” he sighed. “Maybe Finno´s plan to have another one isn´t so bad… in a few years.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is a new chapter!! A little bit of a lecture, talking about serious childhood and adolescense things, some fluff... and a horrible murder attempt that is going to put one lovable character in full protective parent mode. And in the House of Finwë, that means... well, it meant pointing at someone with a sword kind of troubles. Next time, you will see what is going to happen. Merry christmas to all!!!!


	19. Chapter 19

“I only want to say thank you to all…” BAM! The door banging open cut short the speech of goodbye Elu Thingol was saying to his subjects and guests celebrating Yule with him. He glared at the person who dared to do something like that only to find out that he was an old friend of his. He was terrible underdressed, of course, but he was always welcomed. “Finwë, dear friend, didn´t know you would come. You are”

BAM!! Finwë´s fist colliding with his face effectively shut up the elvenking. Everybody gasped, not believing what they have just seen. And the thing that happened next was even more unbelievable, as the former High King of the Noldor unsheathed a sword and pointed it at his old friend´s throat in a very familiar pose. His striking resemblance to his firstborn only helped to the sensation of déjà vu that some of the attendants had.  
People like Queen Earwën, who was there with her father as a special guest. Normally, she spent Yule with her husband and children in Tirion and then they all went to Alqualondë for the final days of the festivity, to spent it with King Olwë, but this year he was invited by his brother and asked for his daughter to accompany him, as he couldn´t “bare with that vain peacock on his own”. She accepted, of course, and dragged Aegnor and his peredhil son along with Finduilas and Gwindor with her, but… she never could have even guessed something like this would happen.

And now things were getting out of control, as Dior was pulling out his own sword while Melian´s form started to glow with rage. Thinking about a way to stop this madness before it gots worse, Earwën felt herself rush to the front, pushing people to the side, but then Finwë decided to start talking.

“You poisoned my little boy… or one of your goons did it, but that doesn´t matter, because it was you. You also tried to poison his boys, my grandchildren” he declared for the world to hear. “How could you? I was your friend…”

“And your little boy, as you call that criminal, is a murderer. His children destroyed my kingdom, they are a menace” the silver haired sinda defended himself, showing his teeth to his now former friend. “I´m only doing a comunitary service in trying to get rid of them.”

“Oh, was it also communitary service to send someone willing to kill innocent children to kill them?” now Thingol was the one surprised. He turned to Melian, who has stopped glowing and was looking at her husband in disbelieve. “You didn´t know that? One of your damn hitmen planned to attack a ridding class full of children only because my grandson Celegorm was the teacher. And confessed that she was going to kill them anyway, only to punish the kinslayers!!”

“I wasn´t aware of that!!” he said, upset. The elvenking turned to his wife and grandson for support, but they only looked horrified that he could send such a person even to Formenos. If there was something worse than a kinslayer, it was a childslayer. “Had I known that one had such dangerous tendencies…”

“And your stunt with the poisoned wine” Finwë continued without taking the sword out of it´s place. “Ereinion was about to drink from the poisoned wine, you know? A complete innocent, about to fall victim of that.”

“I´m sure the man was prepared for that eventuality…”

“The idiot didn´t even have the antidote on himself!! Elrond had to make it himself on the way!!” the noldor´s patience was about to fly out of the window. And the sinda´s, specially at the mention of their wayward descendant. “What would you have done if Ereinion died because of the poison, eh?!! You wouldn´t only have my ire then, but Fingolfin´s and Fingon´s, which in turn means Maitimo and by default Fëanor´s!! It would have meant war!!”

“And this not?!” Thingol screamed, enraged. “Attacking a ruler is an act of war!!”

“Oh, go to Mandos, Elwë!!”

“I would be out by the end if the week, thank you very much!! The same can´t be told about your kinslaying son and his pack of monsters!!”

“I should…”

“You should do nothing” Olwë finally got the middle of the two elves, sending them a warning glare. Then he did the same to Dior, who wanted to run Finwë through with his sword. “Put that away, Fin, before you do something you will regret.”

“I won´t regret…”

“Yes, you would. Specially because if to defend one of your children, you end up losing the four others. Now put away that thing before this escalates” Finwë wanted to say something more, but a look from the teleri king made him obey. As did the thought of Ara, Nolo and his daughter. “I know that seeing a son in such a perilous way is horrible, Fin, but really, you need to control yourself.”

“Can´t when my children are in danger”

“I understand, believe me, but right now you have to. Before this goes worse” he growled, taking a step back. Thingol, for his part, sent him a smug look. One the noldo was about to brush off with another right hook, when Olwë changed his glare from him to his brother. “Really, El? Kinslayers and Childslayer wannabes? It´s that from what the court of the sindar is made of this days?”

“No…” this one answered, looking away. “They are only the ones in charge of dealing with the Feanorians.”

“Earwën” he called for his daughter. “Can you please take Finwë somewhere he could calm down? Melian, dear, come with me. I need to talk to your husband seriously and it would help me to have you there.”

“Of course” Elwë shuddered when he saw his wife´s expression. He had a rough night ahead of him, that was obvious.

Earwën, for her part, grabbed her father-in-law and dragged him to a private solar near the area she and Olwë were using. Once there, she sighed in relieve. She had never really seen that likeness all the people said her gentle father-in-law had to his murderous older son, but right now… right now she was doubting if he wasn´t really Fëanor in disguise. To calm herself down, she poured some tea for the both of them.

“Was that really necessary?” she asked when they were finally sitting with tea in front of each of them. 

“I won´t apologize, not after what he put Fëanáro through.” He looked at her. “Tell me that you wouldn´t do something like that if one of your children were poisoned.”

“No… between us, I would have done worse” she admitted, looking mischieviously at him. And realising that it was a good moment to talk about something else. Like becoming allies against Indis and Turgon´s influence in court.   
“If you were so worried, why leave Formenos to confront Thingol?”

“Because Fëanáro was healthy, he just… his dreams worried me. He sounded so… desperate” Finwë grabbed his cup. “I´m not sure what was worse, the rush to figure out the poison and save his life or… or seeing him so defenceless and afraid and guilty. Seeing my fierce little boy lying there, screaming…”

“And what did he scream?”

“That´s private” Finwë clarified. “But why are you so interested?”

“Because I am part of your family, your son´s wife. Besides, I want to be your friend” there was a sceptic look on his face. “And perhaps I believe that your guidance in the matters of politics would be better for Arafinwë than the one of Indis. Specially when we took into account the backward believes of the Vanyar.”

“You can´t talk of them like that.”

“I know, they are one of the noblest lineages of elves and everything, but they are also a bunch of pious cunts who refused to accept changes” Earwën continued. “And sometimes changes, even if they are not easy, are beneficial for a society” she drank a bit of her tea. “You are of the same mind, right?”

“Yes” the former High King answered. “But to support you against my own wife… that would also bring problems to me.”

“More than you already have?”

“Oh, definitely”

“But totally worth it”

“I´m only saying that, if I support you, even if I´m of the same mind as you, there will be unsavoury consequences for me” Finwë continue. “So, if I support you in everything, what is in it for me?”

“I will return Fëanáro and his family to Tirion”

“Really? Even if they aren´t exactly missing it? Or even want to return?”

“Never said it would be a permanent arrangement” the queen said. “But I will arrange for him to come for important dates, or even to have an embassy of Formenos permanently in Tirion, to give him a voice in court…”

“That all sounds fine and all, I might get in, but…”

“Or we could leave Indis in charge and eventually Arafinwë would accept Turgon´s request to build a Wall around Formenos to turn it in some sort of concentration camp with permanent surveliance and guards pointing at the citizens, not doubting to shot them down with arrows if they dare to get one feet close to the doors.”

“Or Fëanáro might just decide to create some sort of… air battering ram or special cannon to blast Turúkano into the ocean” he rolled his eyes. “You might think me naïve, after everything that happened, but… but I still think we might have a second chance as a family. To solve all of our problems.”

“And I´m offering you the chance to do it” she said. Innerly, she tought that the problems of the Finwean family were too big to solve, even without adding the weight of the new ones, but a good politician didn´t say all she thought. And she was a very good one. “Just think about it. Accepting my offering of friendship and help or continue visiting your son and his get in Formenos… if they survive the next murder attempt.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No, it´s a reality. One your wife will fight to bring sooner” she got up and went away, leaving him to think. She was sure that he got him there, parental instincts were great to make someone an ally. The Queen left to find her father…

“This situation can´t be worse, I swear!!” her great granddaughter was screaming to her husband, as she ever did when she was angry. And Gwindor, calm as ever, let her do that. “I mean… I hold a big grudge agains the Feanorians for leaving us stuck in the Helcaraxë and trying to take over Nargothrond, but…”

“Calm down, cousin” Accarmo, Aegnor´s son, was there too. Much to her surprise, as they didn´t exactly get on with each other. To Finduilas, Accarmo was somewhat of a reminder of her own fatal infatuation with Turin Turámbar, so he was not her favourite family member. “It has a solution…”

“Oh, yes, because a former High King of the Noldor pointing a sword at the Sinda´s have a solution” the princess continued, sending him a glare. “Face it, he just fucked us all”

“Not so much, Melian is furious with him” Earwën said, entering the room. “And my father too. The most fearsome team you can ever ask for.”

“Wonderful, but that doesn´t solve our problems, great grandmother”

“No, but what happened today can work wonders on mine” she smiled, serving herself a little bit of wine. “You just have to see it from another angle.”

-A few days later-

“… and the Valar said that if I enjoy imitating you so much, I could very well make you company here. Can you believe it?!” Finwë finished his tale as he took breakfast with Fëanor and Nerdanel. He left out his conversation with Earwën. They, after all, didn´t need to know that. “It´s not like I pointed a sword at an innocent person, I was facing the idiot who ordered the death of my son and grandsons!!”

“I would have done worst in your place, atar” the smith said, smiling at him. It brought so many good memories… like his own weapon at Fingolfin´s throat. And talking about Fingolfin…

The father of Fingon had finally got the grumptions to get into Formenos to talk to his son. Or at least to Maitimo, because he was the one he needed to deal with. He knocked on the door of the house Argon said belonged to the couple. The redhead, luckily, was the one that opened. 

“Uncle Nolofinwë, what are you doing here?” he asked, having the gal to look surprised. “Sorry, do you want to get in? Finno is inside, he will be very glad to see you. He has been waiting a lot for you to visit…”

“This is going to be a short visit, I´m afraid” the raven answered, getting in. 

“I will go get…”

“That won´t be necessary, it was you I wanted to talk to” Fingolfin didn´t even sit down on the couch when he arrived at the living room, staring at his half-nephew very carefully. “It isn´t going to be easy in any sense of the word, so I will get straight to the fact: what do you want to leave Findékano alone?”

“Excuse me?”

“Look, I can get it, okay? Your father wants to get back at me, you too, for pressuring you into abdicating your throne” Maedhros was fairly sure that he wasn´t pressured into anything back then, but if he wanted to see it that way… “And the best way you found was to ensnarl my son, who was vulnerable and alone due to his… coming out, as Anairë put it…”

“I didn´t take advantage of Finno in any way…” the Feanorion tried to explain, but was met with an expression full of disbelieve.

“Maedhros, I know you” his uncle began. “I knew you back in the in the Age of the Trees, when you still were a good boy, and I know the monster you have become. You do whatever it´s necessary to achieve your goals” the redhead was consterned. For someone to think he would do something like that to Finno… “Now, I can understand if you have the same… tastes in partners as Findékanno. If you do, I´m okay with that…”

“I seriously doubt that”

“Please, I have accepted long ago that there are some people that have different sexual orientation. In fact, I was ready to accept that my son was one of them, but… then you came. Making your father´s vengeance plan a reality…”

“I´m not doing anything to Fingon, uncle” Maedhros finally had enough. “In fact, he was the one that inciated this relationship with me…”

“You don´t have to lie to me” the older elf approached. “I know my son. Do you think I would believe that he would leave his family by his own volition? His son? I don´t know what you did to him, but it ends now.” He showed his teeth to him. “What does your father want me to do for you to stop? Beg him? Apologize for existing? Make Arafinwë renounce the crown? Whatever it takes, I will do it or try to…”

“Stop” the Feanorian, finally having enough. He was deeply offended. Recovering Finno, finding out that he hasn´t lost him after all… along with Maeglin, it was the best thing in his life. He won´t stood by as someone debauches that as a silly vengeance for something Ages past. “Believe it or not, Finno and I love each other…”

“You don´t know what love is.”

“Let me decided that” the redhead faced him. “You think me a monster, but I´m far from that. I love your son and he loves me, there is nothing more to that. Now, if you excuse me…”

“No! I´m not going anywhere!! Not if you don´t release my son!!”

“I have never hurt him!! I love him!!”

“A monster like you doesn´t know what…”

“That´s enough!!!” Findékano who had been hearing everything behind a wall, entered the room. His father approached him with a smile, expecting to be thanked, only to be rejected. “So, you finally appear here. After centuries of absence, you finally appear here. It got me so excited to hear your voice… and for what?!!”

“Finno, son, I only want to help you…”

“Help me?! HELP ME?! RUINING THE BEST THING IN MY LIVE WITH YOUR BASELESS ACCUSATIONS?!” the volume of the screams escalated and Nelyo thanked the Valar that Maeglin was out on his ridding classes. He didn´t need to hear this. “I can´t believe it. I can´t believe that after everything, you still believe that. Didn´t the stroll through fucking ANGBAND give you the message? I LOVE HIM, ATAR!!”

“Finno… Finno, you are confussed”

“No, the one confussed are you” Fingon took a few steps back. “And more than confussed. To call the best thing that happen in my life revenge” he pointed at the door. “Get out”

“Fin… Findékanno…”

“GET OUT!! I DON´T WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!! GET OUT!!” Fingolfin tried again, but the rage in his little boy´s eyes was enough to make him flee. Fingon, for his part, seethed in his place a few more seconds before dashing upstairs and collapsing into his bed. Tears soon started to flow.

“Melmenya? Melmenya, are you alright?” Maitimo entered a few seconds later. He laid besides him, caressing his back. “Shhh, it´s fine. Your father is just being an asshole, nothing more. He will come around.”

“No, he won´t. He hasn´t for centuries, he won´t now” Finno sighed, brushing away his tears. “It´s just that… he is unbelievable!! That he believes this is some kind of petty revenge when we have clearly been together since the Age of the Trees! Even my mother got it!!”

“It´s great to have her support” Maedhros tried to lift the mood, something that didn´t work. “Hey, it´s okay. Whatever he throws our way, we can get over it. He won´t part us again. No one will”

“Promise me”

“I promise” their finger entwined. “I was also thinking… perhaos Maeglin will be old enough for a little brother at twenty…”

“Like you?”

“Twenty-five?”

“Better”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Fingolfin finally appeared!! Hope you enjoyed Finwë giving in to his protective side in front of so many. We are going to have a time jump in the next chapter, keep reading!! Review!!


	20. Chapter 20

Námo was having a terrible day. Scratch that, he was having a terrible century!! And it could turn into a terrible millennium if he didn´t get rid of all of those blank elven spirits that he was currently housing in his Halls. He wasn´t complaining… in fact he was!! His maia too!! They caused such a terrible amount of work that… but there wasn´t any other option to heal some souls!! A complete life makeover was needed to heal some victims!! But the elves wanted to hear him? The vanya, the noldo, the teleri? NOOOOOOOOOO… And that was exactly what landed them in this situation.

If only his inconsiderate brother would have accepted to only come when he needed to have one of the souls erased, but Irmo decided to do things his way and simple erased all the memories in one go and return to his garden… without a single thought of consideration to the work he had just caused his brother and his servants, now left to care for thousands of thousands of tabula rasa souls.

“Help a poor Vala!! Choose adoption!!” he declared, having a campaign along with his servants to endear the concept of adoption to the people of Tirion. He jingled a bell, trying to get attention and wondering when he fell so deep. “Pregnancy is unconfortable!! And a long wait! Adoption gets you an instant baby!!”

“My lord?” one of his maia interrupted.

“What?!” he asked, snapping at him. 

“There is a couple that desired to apply for adoption” instantly Námo´s face brightened. “From Formenos” Ah, the Feanorians! Since this whole mess with the former slaves began, the kinslaying bunch has quickly become his favourite group of elves, no matter what others said. Their more relaxed ways compared to others made them more accepting to homosexuality or adoption. “They wanted to talk now”

“I will be back” the Doomsman handed his pamphlet to his servant and disappeared in thin air. When he arrived in his Halls, dramatically taking his place on a Throne (Melkor thaught him that (hey, say whatever you want about that guy, but he knew how to make an entrance)). “Welcome, elves, to my Halls. I heard you wanted to adopt a little one.”

“Yes, Lord Mandos” for a second, the Vala felt a little bit surprised that it was Kánnafinwë and not Nelyafinwë the one that was requesting a baby, but Maeglin was barely twenty-two, a little kid. They probably still want to wait. “Perhaps… if the child had some musical talents… we can raise it better?”

“But we don´t care that it has them or not, only that we get one.” Maglor intervened before he could screw up more. “Right, Daeron?”

“Absolutely!”

Wooow, someone was nervous there. Or two someones. As if he could deny them a child when his place was overly populated by souls that needed a new home. For a moment he considered giving them twins, as Makalaurë already had experience helping and raising two couples of them, but finally decided against that. Better not unbury a can of worms, any can of worms, between the two of them.

After talking a few seconds with the elves, he went to where the souls were being kept. Having them for such a long time before his and Irmo´s plan ever came to mind, he knew all of them fairly well. A few of them had latent musical talents, but there was a special one he had in mind for them. This one had once been an avari slave born in captivity. He had a prodigious voice for singing, so Sauron and Morgoth had used him as an entertainment. The poor thing went through torture and torture, performing for the two of them until his voice gave up and… well, he didn´t end well. Not when those two considered him useless…

“Very well, little one. Time to leave this place” 

As all the tabula rasa souls, he was just a glowing white orb of light, not able to make a corporeal form anymore. His old hröa was that of a brown haired, dark eyes ellon, but, after his experiment on Maeglin, Námo decided to give this especial kind fo reborn a body that resembled their new parents… only to give them all a true new beginning. So he gave the baby a hröa with sinda silver hair and noldor grey eyes. Then he returned to the couple of elves. They were still nervous, but got better when they saw the crying bundle in the Vala´s arm.

“It´s a boy and he is all yours. Congratulations” he said, giving the baby to them. “What are you going to name him? There are a few names that we don´t allow, giving their historical and spiritual significance, but otherwise, everything is allowed.”

“Well…”

-In Formenos-

“Felmefinwë Liriion” Maglor answered when that same question was made by his family. “It´s a little bit strange, being in two different languages, but Daeron wanted a sinda name along with the quenya one…”

“I think it´s perfect” Nerdanel said, currently holding the baby. It was deep asleep, so for the moment there was no problem, but with the curiosity of the children currently running around it, trying to peek over the blankets, peace and quiet was not going to last long. “From what I saw, he is both noldor and sindar.”

“Yes, he is” Daeron answered as the woman lowered herself to show her other grandchildren their new cousin. Or at least Maeglin, because Muino and Rátissë were already tall enough to perfectly see the child. Approaching the fifty years or already having them, it was normal.

“He is so tiny” Lómion commented when he saw the bundle, poking at it´s cheek with his finger. The newborn squirmed and made some sounds of discomfort before opening his mouth to wail. The redheaded woman immediately got up and started hushing the baby. “How loud! Make him quiet!!”

“Well, when you were his age, you were as tiny… and a lot louder” Maitimo commented, covering his sensitive ears while his mother soothed his nephew. When it seemed that the crying would be for long, he turned to the older kids. “How about you go outside? It´s a beautiful day.”

“Yes, we can go to the river!” his son was quick to accept at the promise of fun and silence away from the baby. “Come, Muino, Issë!!”

“Yes!!” the older peredhel quickly accepted, but the female one didn´t sound as enthusiasted as her brother and cousin. Anyway, they all dashed out of the room and went to a section of the forest which was inside of the walled city. There, the boys started to take of their clothes and jump, when…

“Rátissë? What´s the matter?” Muino asked, seeing that his sister had not followed them.

“Hurry up!! We want to play!!”

“No, play… play you” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. The boys kept looking a her as if she had grown a second head. “W… What? Can´t I see from here?”

“Ehhh… sure, but… you have never rejected playing with us before” Maeglin completed the thought. Then he got out of the water, approaching her. “What? Are you feeling bad? If you are, then my atya has some medicine in a cabinet in my home. I am not supposed to touch it, but I can bring you something.”

“It´s… it´s nothing like that… I´m… can´t I just don´t want to play?!” she screamed, getting away from her little cousin. Well, not so little anymore, the mole now reached her shoulder. “Just do whatever you want yourselves, I will watch from here.”

“Why? It´s fun” 

Maeglin and Rátissë started to fight on the wood floor, she tried to protect herself and he, wet, trying to take the upper clothes away from her. He didn´t understand, he had seen her naked a lot of times the past summer, a few months ago, why was she making such a problem now? His answer came when he ripped her dress and something that has not been there before was exposed to his face. 

“Look what you have done!!” she screamed, red in the face, quickly covering her chest. Her brother, surprised by her outburst, simply looked at her.

“Sorry, I…”

“You are horrible!! Couldn´t you continued playing with Muino like a good little boy?! You destroyed this!!” she said, examining the fabric. That dress didn´t fit her so well anymore and she didn´t particularly like it, but… now she was going to have to return home with a torn dress in a particular place of her body she wanted to hide.

“Sister, he already said he is sorry, you are being…”

“NO!! I WON´T FORGIVE HIM!!” she dashed away, leaving the boys in the river alone. She ran as fast as she could, before lifting her face or releasing her clothes until she reached her rooms and started to cry. That was how her father found her, face first into the pillow.

“Rátissë? Rátissë, your brother told me what happened back at the river, how you behaved with Maeglin. You know that he is little, he didn´t want to tear your clothes. You shouldn´t have been so mean to him.”

“Yes, because Muino always behaved like a prince, no?”

“That was not what I said” Caranthir quickly backed. “Look, if you are so upset about the dress, I can stitch it. It will be like before in a second.”

“Oh, back as before, no? Back as before… if you haven´t noticed, atar, things hasn´t been like before in the last months and, guess what? They won´t ever be like before!!” she rose from her bed, feeling angry letting go of her broken dress. Caranthir´s eyes widened when he saw his little girl. Or what was in her chest. “You see? I can´t play naked with the boys anymore! Or play in the mud with them!! Not like this!!”

Not seeing any other way to escape this uncomfortable situation, Moryo apologized and fleed the room. His rushed flee quickly brought him to his parent´s house, where the couple was sharing a cup of wine. Before letting them talk, he grabbed the bottle and drank directly from it, surprising both Nerdanel and Fëanor. He finally slumped into the chair closer to his mother, the bottle still on his hands.

“What happened?” asked the redhead, carefully. Just before they were celebrating the new member of the family and now… now she didn´t know what went bad. “Does it have to do with the incident with Maeglin in the river?”

“No… well… yes… something like that…” at the inquisitive look on his nostari´s faces, he sighed. “Rátissë… she had a reason to react as bad as she did. She… she also… had those… those things in her chest” he made a sign when they showed their confussion. Then the uncomfortableness in his father´s face appeared. “Those things women had.”

“Those things are called breasts, Carnistir dear. I´m sure I already explained you that” her son went as red as his name suggested and her husband seemed to be trying to disappear into his chair. She shook her head, men tended to be as useless with these things as mouses. “You already knew she was going to grow up, didn´t you, dear? Children don´t stay children forever.”

“I wish she had done that” the Feanorian said, taking another sip from the bottle. “Eru, I wish Haleth was here. She was supposed to have told her this things!! About… about women and maturity…”

“Yes, I suppose it´s better to have a mother daughter conversation to explain this kind of things” Nerdanel nodded. “Why don´t you bring her to me then? I would be honoured to explain to your child the wonders of womanhood. And you should go talk to my father too, he would give you better advice at dealing with a growing woman.”

“I… will do so. Thank you, mother”

“And you should repair the dress.” The redhead suggested. “Do it as some sort of apology.”

“In fact, I think… the dress doesn´t fit her anymore. Not in the…” Fëanor grabbed his cup at the same time as Caranthir took a sip from the bottle, both emptying their drink. “May… maybe I could expand the space in the… in the…”

“Or make another, you have enough material to do that. She would like it” she rolled her eyes. “Now off you go to your grandfather”

“Yes” Caranthir ran off at top of her speed. The nís turned to her husband.

“What is in your mind?”

“That I´m glad we don´t have a daughter of our own” she frowned, glaring at him. he raised his hands in surrender. “I know you wanted one, I´m sorry. It´s just that… girls are so complicated, wonder how my father and Mahtan dealed with some of you. Raising our boys was already complicated, I can´t even wonder how it would have been with girls.”

“Complicated. Nice save, dear” Nerdanel smiled, remembering when they tried to have a little girl, only for all of those tries to end up with one or two more boys. Until they were too many children. “Well, guess my dream became true with our granddaughter, as her mother couldn´t be here.” She shook her head when he saw his traumatized expression. “It makes me remember when you gave the talk to the boys…”

“Oh, stop there, I don´t want to remember that.”

She started laughing at his even more comical face, remembering how that, when their boys started to have funny dreams about girls (or boys or both, depending on the son they were talking about), Fëanor took them with him on a road trip to talk to them about the wonders of manhood. She even remembered the order of the trips, first with the four older and then with the three younger.

Moryo, for his part, was running towards the smithy his grandfather owned. Fëanáro have offered his former teacher and father in law his own mansion, but Mahtan declined the offer, preferring to live a simpler live. He still changed his place of residence from Tirion to Formenos, but he did it to be closer to his family. Not to gain a completely useless big house. And he continued to work as a smith too.

“Ahh, Morifinwë! Come inside, I have just forged an onyx cloak pin that you…”

“How did you deal with ammë when she was growing up?!” he screamed when he just arrived. 

“Excuse me?!” a few explanations later, Mahtan finally got the grip on the situation. And, for a minute or two, he pitied his grandson. Dealing with a girl being a single father was not easy, specially during that time of the development… he knew because his wife was absent too due to an accident when his Nel reached that age. “Well… it´s going to be a rough few years for you.”

“For Eru, Rátissë was already complicated to begin with and now… for Varda´s sake, this was supposed to be Haleth´s work, not mine…”

“No, Moryo, her development is something that concerns the two parents. But, as your wife can´t be present, she only has you. Muino too” Carnistir growled. Muino wasn´t going to be as complicated as his sister. “Don´t worry, it´s going to get better. Girls tend to mature faster than boys do.”

“Yes, and that makes it more frightening, opens many doors to many horrible possibilities” Caranthir shuddered.   
“Soon she is not only going to have tiny breasts, but full size ones. And hips and an ass… and boys surrounding her…”

“Not necessarily” Mahtan shrugged. “Your mother never had many suitors. She was considered an old maid when she married your father, didn´t she told you?”

“Yes… maybe Rátissë could follow her example.”

“Or she could decide to marry and give you many grandchildren” Mahtan patted a sombre looking Moryo on the back. “It worked for me”

They continued talking for some time, until Caranthir finally felt ready to return home. He entered on the tips of his toes, trying to avoid the problem until he had… something. Or at least he altered something into other something that would certainly calm things down with his daughter a bit. 

“Hey there, darling” he said, entering her room. “Peace offering”

“Thought you will never come back, not after you escaped like a little girl” Rátissë said, rolling her eyes. “Didn´t you know that elfling started to change into young adults at fifty years old? Didn´t you started to develop at fifty?”

“Yes… I know, but… it´s different when you are talking about your daughter” he put the peace offering on the bed, a dress to replace the one that was teared. “This one should fit you better, it has more space on the chest for your… breasts. I will make you more soon.”

“Guess it will be okay then”

“And I arranged for you to spend some time with your grandmother to talk about… your female problems” he put a hand over his red face. “Wish I could help you more with this, but I have never dealed with women much, except for my mother and your. And they were not very talkative about their… issues” he sighed. “Wish your mother could be here”

“Me too” she then grabbed the dress. “It´s really pretty”

“I knew you would like it”

-In another place-

“Atya, Atar, I have a question” Maeglin said after a very quiet afternoon. “When Rátissë´s dress tore, I noticed that she had those thingies that grandmother has on her chest now” Maedhros, who has been drinking some milk, spit it all full force. Fingon let his own cup fall. “When I asked Muino, he said that they were made to feed a baby.”

“Well… ehhhh” dammit, Muinafinwë! “Yes, women feed babies with that. It´s called breasts”

“I already knew that” the child frowned, not liking being considerated stupid, not even by his parents. “My question was another” the parents kept looking at him, waiting for the inevitable doom. “Where do babies come from?”

The couple was paralized when that arrived, managing to move only to look at each other. Their eyes were silently passing the responsibility of having that particular Talk to the other, listing the reasons why. They both supposedly have experience, having been parents before, but... Findékano was excusing himself practically saying that he didn´t live enough to have that embarrassing experience with Ereinion and Maitimo explained in the same way that he panicked when the twins asked and dumped the responsibility entirely on Kanno.

“Ehhhh… okay… okay” a hand landed hard on the redhead´s, who got the message. Don´t even dare to leave me alone in this, Finno said. “When… when a nís and a nér love each other really much… they… they give each other a special hug” a few embarrassing hours and red faces later, they have managed to get Maeglin to understand the basics of elf reproduction. “Did you understand?”

“Yes, but… how were you able to have me when you are néri? Does the hug work with two néri too?”

The parents stared at each other again, wondering if they should touch the subject of adoption yet. But the answer was simple enough.

“We will tell you when you are older” they answered at the same time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... Kanno and Daeron got a new baby! Formenos is going to be full of children if someone continued to follow their example, no? His took me a while to decide: Felmefinwë is for emotion or impulse, which are somehow related to music, and Liriion is son who sings. Appropiate for two master musicians, no?  
> The others also are growing up, Caranthir´s children specially. They are leaving behind childhood to enter their teen years, so our dear Feanorians are in for a little surprise.  
> The next chapter is going to be somewhat of an interlude, before another time jump. Other than that... hope you are enjoying the festivities. Review!!


	21. Chapter 21

It has been a long time since Olórin visited that particular tower. It was located in a very distinctive patch of land, a place the elves were banned from. Many maiar too and for obvious reasons, once you have seen the protections put around it. There was a girdle around it made by Melian herself and fortified by Varda that would put to shame the one that used to protect Doriath. The tower was raised by Aulë entirely of white sacred stone and the door covered in luminous flowers of Yavanna. Strong winds of Manwë and Eönwë themselves protected the upper parts and a contingent of maiar trained by Tulkas himself flew around it, protecting it… or keeping something contained. The Evil that tainted the place.

“Your pass” one of the guards ordered him. He extended his Lady Nienna´s orders to him and the other get out of his path. “Prepare yourself, his power continued growing even in captivity. Soon we will have to think of somewhere better to keep him.”

“He wouldn´t have any other way” he answered, swallowing. He finally stepped into the tower, immediately feeling the oppressive power it was keeping trapped. Swalloweing hard, he remembered himself that he had prepared for this. He was the most faithful, that was why he was given this job. He climbed upstairs until a valarin symbol covered door.

“It´s open for anyone who isn´t me” a voice said from the other side. Praying to Eru for protection against influence of the dark forces, he entered the warded room. “Hello, master Olorin. Here to make me company?”  
The maia in front of him was young, the youngest of the Ainur probably, but at the same time, his power grew more than any of them. Which was scary enough without his devious calm mind. And he couldn´t be any other way, THEY didn´t create him like that. What he was… The last Creature of Morgoth, Prince of the Darkness, the Mindturner, the Lord of Poisons, Valarauco´s darling were just some of his names. But, of course, he had another.

“Hello, Vilangon” he said, clenching his fists, using the name his parents gave him. “We see each other again”

This one smiled, the beauty of his face making everything scarier. The Spawn of Melkor, that was the name the Valar assigned him. It fit him. The boy really looked like the Dark Vala. He had a long, straight mane of dark hair and pale skin that reminded everybody of Morgoth, but his blazing fire eyes were definitely Sauron´s. The only different was the colour, poison purple, but they were set ablaze just like Gortahur´s before he was destroyed. Yes, the boy was a combination of the Dark Lords, something that made him very dangerous. And terrified Olorin. Just as when he first met him, fleeing the ruins of Mordor.

He had a complicated history. Vilangon was born originally in Angband, some time after the escape of Fingon and Maedhros. Maybe it was hard to believe, but those two were not the only ardent lovers in the dark place. The Dark Vala and his lieutenant also had that sort of relationship. And when Morgoth realised that he needed stronger, better creatures, and saw the product of Melian´s couples with Thingol (which managed to put him to sleep), he decided to bring an Ainur to live from his own flesh and blood. So the next time he coupled with Sauron in a female form, he made sure to something like Luthien inside of him, just more… maiar. Powerful too. The pregnancy nearly killed Sauron, but he recovered ultimately. Returned to do the same, maiming and torturing. Just with a baby by his side.

After the Fall of Morgoth, Vilangon followed his mother to Mordor. By then, he had already learned the arts of torture from his parents, even if he didn´t apply them himself, but was less known due to his lack of maturity. And, back then, power. It was like that that they found him just after losing his mother. The boy was still not mature, so it was easy to bring him to the Valar for judgement and confinement. But they couldn´t kill an innocent, so they confined him to the gardens of Este, trying to curb his dark tendencies. Unfortunately for them, the moment the boy stopped growing in size, his powers started to do it instead of his height. And, woow, he was really his father´s son. He rebelled and tried to attack. Luckily, the Valar were prepared now and confined the wretched creature.

“Let me guess” he started in a mocking tone. “Nienna again felt pity for me, poor mind turned son of her wayward brother, and sent you to comfort me in my imprisonment” the young maia continued in the same sarcastic voice. “Oh, where are my manners? Would you like some tea? Really, my parents raised me better…”

“Your parents raised you to be the bane of this world in case they fall”

“That doesn´t mean they neglected my other education” he moved where a little metal kettle was over the fire. “My mother was quite strict about courtly etiquette.”

“As if that ever bothered him”

“Of course!! Angband´s court was to be kept in complete order!! It was the only way to control so many dark creatures” he poured two cups of tea and offered one to Olorin. One the older maia didn´t accept. “So… this is my century dose of therapy?”

“Therapy?” 

“Just one little word I heard somewhere that describes auntie Nienna´s work very well, don´t mind me” he waved it off, still with that smiling face. “Anyway, I think you should begin trying to convince me that it´s a great thing to accept the mercy of the Valar or that I should try and find the light inside of me…”

“No, I believe you are a monster and a danger. They should have thrown you to the Void with your father when you first followed in his footsteps.”

“At least drink some of my tea before judging me”

“I wouldn´t drink anything that was prepared by your hands” the former wizard gave him a glare. “It might be laden with poison”

“It´s chamomile, would never ruin the taste with poison” he took a sip from it. “I can´t say the same about my uncles and aunties. I know they would give much to get rid of me. If only they weren´t self righteous cunts…”

“Don´t refer to the Valar like that!”

“I can do whatever I want. After all, family is family, no? And mine hasn´t done anything to gain my love” he lowered his cup. “Why are you really here, Olorin? Lady Nienna might have taken pity on me again, but she will never sent a maia so notorious without the express permission of Manwë. And uncle dearest would never give it without a reason of his own.”

“Sometimes, I think you are proyecting your father into him”

“Too much of a stick up his ass for that” the boy rolled his eyes. “No, I´m only telling you the truth. And, despite all your willingness to defend him, you know it´s true. So, if you stopped lying, what did the Blessed King.”

“Hloimadil…”

“Now there is something I haven´t heard in a long time. Back to amilessë after such a long time? After your precious Valar and Valië gave me my Valarauco name?” he showed his teeth a little bit. “Get on with this, and don´t try to deceive me.”

“Nienna did feel mercy for you…”

“Of course, she felt weakness for everybody”

“Only the wretched would mistake compassion for weakness”

“If you say so” he stared at his drink again. “Just out with it, what do you want?”

“Manwë has felt something weird behind the veil that separated Aman from the world of the mortals. Something… evil” Vilangon didn´t lift his head. “It´s making the mortals kill each other out of pure paranoia, for what he could see…”

“King Manwë is taking looks at the mortal world? First news” he sighed. “What does it have to do with me?”

“He believes that a creature of Morgoth is at work in there. That´s why he sent some of the new fire maias to take charge of it. They will work differently to how us aratar used to, but ultimately take charge of it… which should be easier if you facilitate some information” he extended a piece of paper. “What do you know?”

“What is on the table for me?”

“He will take you through the doors of night” Olorin answered, gritting his teeth at having to deal with this wretched creature. They should have left him in Void to make his damn father company. “He will even permit you to talk to Melkor this time.”

“Hummm… tempting… alright” he dramatically accommodated himself, a gesture that made him look even more like Melkor. “It´s indeed a creature, just not an orc, Balrog or even a spider. It was creatred long ago out of pure poison...”

“When?”

“What?”

“When was this creature deviced? Why did Morgoth not let it loose on the world?”

“Oh, you are mistaken!” the other maia laughed hard. “My father didn´t have anything to do with the creation of that particular being. The one that deviced it was me” he revealed, putting a hand on his chest. Gandalf looked even more horrified. “Incredible, don´t you think? I was little when I made it, but I managed… at a price.”

“You crippled yourself” the older spirit understood. “We thought you came into your power because of your maturity process, but in reality your body was healing itself… because you crippled yourself when you were younger, making this creature.”

“More like produced an unconvenience reverse of my age and an uncomfortable growing process reminiscence of an elf´s, but yes, I did.” He made an annoyed face. “And I didn´t even have much success, I ended with something resembling a crisalid… wonder how the full creature would look like now.”

“But you crippled yourself”

“Beginners mistake, wasn´t so bad after all” he moved a hand in a dismissive gesture. “And being an actual child instead of one in the body of an adult has instead made me better. Just like with the creature, it needed time to grow up and learn how to poison people´s minds.”

“Poison?” back to the youngling´s favourite toy.

“Do you know what´s my favourite title between all I have? The Lord of Poisons” his smiled turned as wicked as Sauron´s when he was about to end Olorin once, making him inwardly wince. His chamomile tea, also, turned into a purple connoction of miasma. “There is one that is my personal favourite. You don´t even need apply it, or to plant the seed in the mind of the victims, because it´s already there, a part of their nature. And it´s lethal.”

“What is it?”

“Fear, my dear Olorin. Fear is the best poison of all” Vilangon licked his lips. “It twists the souls, poisons the thoughts… oh, sweet fear that turns edain into animals, producing hate and making them do the most abominable things…”

“It´s that all?” Gandalf said, facing the other with all his strenght. “Yes, I have seen the effects of fear when I was in Middle Earth. I also saw how your parents used it to control people… but I also saw something else, something fear could do nothing about: bravery. I saw that bravery every day in the elves and humans that defy the dark forces and see it every day in the faces of the ones that lost their lives and had the strength to rebuilt after being reborn. I saw how that bravery ended both of your parents!! As it will end your creature and you!!”

“Bravery is not in all, dear friend” the son of Morgoth commented. “And maybe not all the bravery in the world will be able to save them from my creation and it´s effects. This creature, after all, it´s completely made of FEAR.”

“We will see about that” Olorin got up to leave, but the voice of the prisoner called for him. 

“And my visit? I want to see my father so much…”

“Manwë will fulfil his promise” promised the maia. “With some luck, he will also leave you there with him to spend eternity, now that you haven´t proved entirely innocent.”

“Though luck that I never give orders to my creature or intended for it to work after the initial failure, making whatever it did not my responsibility” without any other word, the Istalri abandoned the tower. 

The boy returned to watch his fire, the only source of entertainment he had in that distant tower where his kin was keeping him sealed. No matter, no matter, Vilangon had other sources of entertainment. Namely the creature he finally unleashed on the world. The pleasurable waves of fear it was sending… they nurtured his powers so much. It will take some time, but there wasn´t any rush. He was patient.

So let the Valar laugh and hope, thinking that their only problem were the souls of the corrupted and the tortured, fixing kinslayers and making sure some idiots respect second chances. Let the elves live in their little dream world, where everything was alright and they helped to defeat the Darkness. Soon they will wake up to find their world poisoned by him. And repent that they believed it so easily defeated.

The best part was that, even if his creature was ultimately defeated, the great can of worms would have already been opened!! He licked his lips, already savouring the fear that would ransack the world. Edain against edain for completely imaginary offenses, suffering… all due fear, all due him. He will rise again as a complete being and then everybody will bow to him. He only needed time.

-Later-

“Are you ready?” Manwë asked his nephew, voice cold as the Helcaraxë. The boy nodded and let himself be taken through the doors, chained so he wouldn´t try anything. The King of the Valar turned around and took him through the doors, to the place Melkor was chained.

“Ahhh, brother!! So long since your last visit!!” Morgoth´s voice sent shivers down the other two Ainur´s back for completely different reasons. “Tell me, why are you here now?”

“Visit” the light Vala answered in valarin and pushed the boy forward. “An Arda hour, nothing more. Enjoy your chat.”

Icy blue met poison purple, secret conversation exchanged between father and son without the need of words or even thoughts. The Dark Vala smiled, knowing that their time was close. They only have to wait.

“So, son of mine, how have you been?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... year 2020 is saying goodbye. Hope it has been good for anyone.
> 
> On another place, like I said, this is some interlude. With a new villain being presented. Don´t worry, he won´t have a big part on this fic, his presence will be more obvious on the third part of the series. I decided to make it a crossover!! If you pinpoint the other universe I´m making a crossover with, I will give you more details. There are some clues in the chapter.
> 
> By the way, Hloimadil is "Friend of Poison" in quenya. Think it was a good name for the son of Morgoth and Sauron. But if you want another, you are free to give a suggestion.
> 
> Happy new year to everybody!!!


	22. Chapter 22

“Happy begetting day, atya!!” Maeglin´s voice shook his parents awake. They opened their eyes, tired, right on time to dodge as their son jumped in. Groaning, Maitimo forced himself up. It was his begetting day, as the elfling said, and he should be celebrating. “Here, here!! I made it myself!!”

The redhead nodded, grabbing the poorly packed gift and opening it. He wasn´t surprised to find something made of metal, but the quality of the work was good for a beginner. The hunting dagger he was gifted looked simple, nothing like the works of art his father produced on his forges, but the edge was really cutting and the piece was well balanced, with a detail in gold in the handle that was a little twisted, but very artistic. 

“Hummm, this is a very good work” the redhead commented, making a few moves with it. “Are you sure you did it yourself, little mole?”

“Well, grandfather and Tyelpe helped me a bit, guiding my hands to make the handle and the decorations” confessed the child, rubbing his forehead with a bit of nervousness. “But I made the blade! All by myself!!”

“Really? Great” he patted his head. “You are already becoming a great smith and you have only been ten years under my father´s teachings.”

“Of course!!” the kid said, then turned to his other father, who discretly tried to get back to sleep. “Atto, where is your gift for atya? Show me!! I want to see what you are going to gift atya!!”

“Ehhhh, perhaps later” Finno answered. One part of his gift was not child friendly, but the other… “It´s traditional to give the gifts in the party your grandfather is giving for his begetting day, do you know?” the elfling then tried to flee, only to be caught by Maedhros. Fingon chuckled before kissing him on top of his head. At thirty years old, they didn´t have much time left to threat him this way. “And we are first.”

“No!!! I don´t want to go!! Adult parties are boring!!”

“Don´t care, little mole, we have to go. Off to the bath and then to the dresser. And don´t you dare to try and escape!!” the redhead instructed and released his son, who ran away. Then, he turned to his husband. “So… are you really going to give me your gift now or do I have to wait more?”

“For one half of it at least. Or do you want to explain to everybody in Formenos why you are publicly enjoying your spouse?” they kissed passionately at that estatement, falling back on the bed. “Careful, do you want him to hear?”

“If you are silent…”

“Atto, atya!! Where is my jewellery box?! I want to do my braids in the same way as uncle Curufin!!” they sighed. With the boy so active, they wouldn´t be able to have the quick action they wanted.

“Wait for me, you are going to make a disaster on your own!!” the Nolofinwean shouted before getting out of bed. “How could he be so active on the morning? I was a zombie in the mornings at thirty. It almost made me wish he was a baby again. At least then he slept until well in the morning.”

“And kept us awake at night” Maedhros reminded him. “Do you… do you still want another?”

“What?”

“I was asking you if… you still want another. We said that when Maeglin reaches thirty we will think about it and I still want another one, but you sound if you think he is too much work for now. If you want to wait a little bit more…”

“No, I… I would love to” he lowered his head a bit. “I only… want to introduce Maeglin to Arákano, see how that goes.”

They both remained in silence after that. It was a tricky theme between them. Introducing Findékano´s family to the elfling… it could have horrible consequences that none of them wanted him to face at such a young age. Of course, they trust Anairë and to a certain point, Argon, but when their son was involved, they felt rightly paranoid. They didn´t want anything to happen to him… it was true that Arákano worked hard to gain their trust again after his terrible mistakes, but… at the same time he was very close to Turgon and Idril. If he ever opened his mouth to them…

“It is fine… as long as we are together and receive a promise that he won´t tell the others” Maitimo answered. “He said he would visit with your mother tomorrow, right?”

“Yes”

“Then we will introduce him to Maeglin then… and try to explain to him why it must be kept a secret from Turúkano” he sighed. “Hope everything goes alright.”

“Come on, dear, cheer up, it´s your begetting day” Finno said, caressing his cheek. “I´m sure everything it´s going to be alright. Besides, once it´s over, we can petition Námo for a new baby, no? A little cousin Felme can play with.”

“Makalaurë is going to love that, he always says that child is too reclusive for his own sake” the redhead rolled his eyes. “He is always practising with his harp…”

“Wasn´t Kano like that too?”

“Unfortunately, but Valinor doesn´t need another Kano”

They finally got up and dressed for the party. Fingon took care of Maeglin´s and Maedhros braids, as he didn´t want his husband to appear before all the court of Formenos without the proper hairdress. Then he wove his own signature golden ribbons on his own tresses, adding a few accessories to them. Once ready, they all went to the main castle, where the elves of the city were already reunited to celebrate the heir´s special day. He received many gifts along with congratulations from the citizens and his family members, but his favourite was Finno´s. He was surprised when he opened it and found…

“Is that… Himring? And… Armenelos?” he said, surprised to find tiny reproductions of the cities he and his sons have formed in Middle Earth. There was a tiny Rivendell, Himring, Amon Ereb and many more, perfectly made. He loved them. “I never had the chance to put my eyes on some of them and now I can.”

“Neither did I, but Ereinion and Elrond were willing to help me with this. Your mother also, she help me make the reproductions with help of some of the original plans of the city Elrond had in his library…”

“Best gift ever” he kissed his husband´s cheek, happy to finally be able to see the cities Elros and his descendants made. His heart beat harder at seeing the greatness of Armenelos and Minas Tirith, where the gondorians had resisted against the forces of Sauron. How much he wished to be able to see them in person.

But, at the same time, he wouldn´t change his life with Fingon for anything. It was far from perfect, as it didn´t have Elros in it, yet he was happy. Happier than in all of those Ages he spent in Middle Earth and locked up in Mandos. He was reminded several times of that in the day, as his parents smiled at each other with a love he hasn´t seen since the Age of the Trees while his grandfathers watched them with a warm gaze and his brothers laughed with each others and their children run around, growing up without a trouble in their minds…

Maeglin was at the head, making a mess of his braids and shaking the jewellery off. Following him was Muino, who has grown up a few inches since his development stage started. He was also changing his voice, a process the younger elflings found funny, but him not so much. Otherwise, he was enjoying that he was turning into a broader and sandy brown haired version of Caranthir. The boy was no smith, but a calm, book smart person that could be found helping his father with finances and timidly avoiding social compromises unless it was with his cousins. Rátissë was the most changed of all. She was still growing but, much to Moryo´s dismay, already showed a nice womanly figure. Her long, dark locks hung normally free down to her waist. The girl was not considered a great beauty, not for elves, but she didn´t care. What she was proud of was her political wit, nurtured after spending many years learning about politics and courtly intrigue at the knees of two former High Kings. Felme, still the baby of the group, went behind them at every chance. At such a young age, he was alreay showing a promise in the musical arts his parents nurtured carefully. He was otherwise timid and only left his music room to play with his cousins. 

“We are doing a good job after all” Fingon said when they returned to the house later. “They seemed to be happy.”  
“They are great children” Maedhros answered, ushering their son inside. He then lowered his voice to a whisper. “I wish the world would know them as that and not scions of a house of kinslayers and freaks of nature.”  
“That will change, you will see” his husband assured him. “Things have changed in the last few decades, my love, so much that our relationship is accepted here and in many cities, something that wouldn´t have happened in ages past. There is so much hope for people like us now” they kissed. “Why the somber thoughts now? It´s your begetting day, you should finish it well.”  
“It´s very hard not to have somber thoughts when our peace depends on the reaction your brother had to Maeglin tomorrow.”

“Arno is not Turno, Nelyo. He is by far more understanding. And my mother will be there too, she will make sure nothing bad comes out of this.”

“He also could… tell Irissë” the redhead said, bitting his lips. “Sometimes, I still have nightmares about her coming and taking our sweet boy from us… and what will become of that.”

“Yes…” Fingon lowered his head. “But again, Irissë hasn´t been interested in thirty years. Why would she be now?”

“I don´t know…”

“Because there is no reason, that´s why. We will be fine” Finno assured, then took his husband´s hand before he could add another word and guided him to their room, locking the door before turning around, a playful smile on his lips. “Now, are you ready for the second part of your gift?”

“Oh, yes”

-The next day-

“I´m sorry for not coming yesterday, Maitimo dear, but Nolo would have suspected if I decided to take absence with enough days to arrive in Formenos for your begetting day” Anairë said, receiving a cup of tea from her son in law. “Travelling with Arákano helped a bit, but I didn´t want to take any risks.” She pulled a polished wood box from her bag. “For your special day, my dear.”

“Thank you” the redhead received it gratefully. He opened the box and found a pair of necklaces in a typical Tirion fashion. He ogled at them a bit, he hasn´t wore ones like that since the Age of the Trees. And even then, he preferred his jewellery with his father´s signature style, very different from that. 

“And here is mine” Argon said, a little bit ackward. He has been a jerk to Finno since he started seeing that vanya skank, he recognized it now, and had done many things to compensate it, but could never shake the sensation that Maedhros hasn´t forgiven him for that. “Hope you like it…”

“It´s pretty” his cousin answered, balancing the dagger he had just been gifted between his fingers. It was less artistical than Maeglin´s and certainly less special, but he liked it anyway. “Heard you are about to get married again, Arno.”

“Ehhhh, yes” he shrugged, still nervous. 

“Is it a vanya again? I thought you have sworn out of them after what happened last time.”

“Well, yes, but… she is… great” the younger elf bit his lip. “A nive teleri lady aunt Earwën introduced to me. And from a good family. Sileveth is her name” he turned to Anairë. “Ammë loves her too.”

“Indeed, she is a nice lady. Educated and careful… everything my Arákano needs” she smiled at her youngest. “Pleasantries aside, I believe it´s time for us to get to the point of our visit” the couple tensed. “Are you ready?”

“As if I could ever be…” the redhead made a signall to one of his servants. “Bring in Maeglin, he must returning from the forge now.”

“Wait, Mae…” the parents stared at him, effectively shutting him up. 

The waiting was full of an uncomfortable silence until the child finally entered the room. He was filled from head to toe in sweat and coal, his face darkened by the material, but Argon still recognized him as the nér that went to his house to search fro Irissë more than thirty years ago, only much younger. Maeglin, for his part, didn´t seem to remember him or having been an adult some time, because he smiled and ran to Anairë, covering her dress with black handprints.

“Haruni Anairë!!” he screamed as he hugged him.

“Maeglin, come here” Fingon called him, his eyes still on his brother. Hard, as if daring him to say a word before time. “This is your uncle Arákano, my brother. He has come to meet you. What do you say?”

“Hello, uncle” he bowed respectfully. “I´m Maeglin Lómion, nice to meet you”

“You… you too” answered Argon, not giving credit to anything he had seen. He knew they have adopted a Child of Mandos, but he never could have thought that that child was his wayward sister´s abandoned son.

“Now off you go to take a bath and put on fresh clothes” Maitimo said after the elfling finished with his introduction, giving him a little push towards the stairs. “You better hurry or you won´t get to enjoy the sweets your haurni brought from Tirion this time.”

“NO!!!” he rushed upstairs. The four adults returned to their tense silence until the youngest Nolofinwean finally got the grumptions to talk.

“I can´t believe it… Irissë´s son?” he finally asked. 

“I know it´s selfish to keep him on our side when he could be with his mother…”

“No, I believe… I believe it´s great that you are raising him” his brother said with complete honesty. After all, from his point of view, Aredhel should never be trusted with a child, not even her own. Besides, she didn´t want a kid or the responsibilities that came with it. “I won´t tell anything to Turno.”

“So… you knew about Turúkano´s byass towards Maeglin” commented Fingon, more calm. He served wine with practised ease, making everybody calm a little bit. 

“More like hate”

“Maitimo!!”

“What? It´s true”

“And you don´t know how much” Argon sighed. “Maybe I shouldn´t be telling you this…”

“Do tell!” the parents screamed at him.

“Well, our brother has never really forgiven him for what happened to his precious hidden city” he rolled his eyes. “That is very well known, but it´s more than that. He has been making plans for the next time Maeglin gets out of Mandos since he commited suicide under that bridge…”

“Maybe we shouldn´t talk about this here” Anairë said, reminding them that the child was about to get down to reunite with them. “I know you are anxious about this, I would be too, yet we should think with our heads cold…”

“I´m back!!”

“There you are, sweetie” Anairë´s expression lost all her seriousness, giving her grandson a big smile. “I brought you a new selection of sweets straight from Tirion. Thought you would like something new.”

“Yes!!” the three other adults stared at the child and woman, wondering how could someone wish such a cute kid evil. Unfortunately for them, as they were very aware of, Turgon was not beyond that. No, he could and would make Maeglin´s life living hell if he could. Just like he did last time.

“I won´t tell Turno anything, I promise” Arákano said before he left with his mother later that day. “But you should avoid antagonizing him for a time.”

“It´s hard, considering that he wants to turn Formenos into some kind of walled penal colony” Maedhros said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, thank you for understanding. Wish the rest of your family were as understanding.”

“They will come around… with time” the youngest elf sighed. “Well, Itarillë and Turno not, Irissë probably either, but you know what I mean.”

“Yes, I know” he certainly hoped so, for Fingon´s sake.

-In Tirion-

“Father, I didn´t expect you so ealy” Earwën said, receiving King Olwë in her private salon. “May I offer you a cup of wine or…”

“I won´t tarry long, need to discuss something with your husband” he sat down anyway. “How is the thing with Finwë? Have you received an answer about your proposition to become allies against Indis?”

“No, but… I think the answer is going to be positive” she pushed a silver strand away from her face. “He wants his complete family here in Tirion, as they were before. Not only the Nolofinweans and Arafinwean, but the Feanorians too. And I am the only one willing to lend him a hand with that.”

“And your husband? Is he willing to receive them back in court?”

“Not for now, but I have my ways to sway his mind. He has approved many changes in Tirion thanks to said habilities of mine.”

“Very well” the nér breathed in and out. “Daughter, that was not the only reason I wanted to talk to you. I… am going to legallice same sex marriages in Alqualondë” Earwën opened her eyes in surprise. She knew that her father was pro modernity, but she didn´t think he was that much of that. “Adoption too”

“Are you sure? I don´t believe the teleri are ready for something like that”

“It was going to happen sooner or later, so I decided sooner. Because I can do this on my terms, putting the rules instead of having some dictated to me, as would happen if it was later” he stretched. “Anyway, that will put us on equal terms to Formenos. And the rules will be a little bit stricter than there.”

“Hope everybody sees it the way you do, father”

“Don’t worry about that, my child, I know what I´m doing” Olwë smiled at her. “I will begin to work on Elwë so he accepts this too before the kinslayers got all the Children of Mandos. Your job will be to make Finarfin agree with that. Do you believe you can do that?”

“Of course”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the last day of the year arrived. Hope you are having a good time!! In this chapter winds of change are blowing, the children are growing up and people is happy. Will happiness last? I don´t know, probably not. But the good news are... Mae and Fin are planning for a new baby! Do you want one? I´m open to suggestions about names too. Review!!


	23. Chapter 23

“Ahhhh… oh, pusta!!” 

Maedhros opened an eye at the cursing in quenya that came from the dormitory down the hallway. Fingon, also awoken by the tirade in a very loud voice, smiled. It was not every day their cute little son slept in when he had to work on the forge. Well, no so little anymore. At fifty years old, the elfling was starting to develop into a fully grown nér, gaining a few inches and getting broader each day that passed. He also started to have those bursts of rebellion that caused his parents more than one headache. And they were not even on the worst part of adolescence yet, only tasting the beginnings!! The horror!!

Oh, well, at least they wouldn´t go throught the same Caranthir had to. The poor Moryo had fainted the first time he saw his little girl with her nightgown stained with red after her first moonblood came. Nerdanel had to go to him with a bottle of smelling salts and then hold him for at least an hour as he wailed that he didn´t want his little girl to become a woman. Muino was so ashamed of his behaviour that he convinced his family not to show up for the next three family meetings. Finwë still found it funny.

“Morning, atto!! Morning, atya!!” Maeglin said around a piece of bread he held in his mouth in a badly pronounced quenya. “Sorry I can´t take breakfast with you, I need to run!!” he said from their doorstep, taking off as soon as he got a grunt of an answer. “See you later!!”

“You know, we should put a rooster in that child´s bedroom” Fingon proposed with a yawn, getting up to begin the day. “He is getting up later and later each day.”

“That is common on teenagers…” Maedhros commented, pushing his hair aside.

“Really? Because I didn´t start to wake up late until that night in Alqualondë after the First Kinslaying” now his expression was playful, remembering that night clearly. “Wasn’t the most romantic first time ever, but after such a terrible experience, we both needed to find comfort and even some pleasure…”

“It… It wasn´t our first time” the redhead was… well… red. “We experimented with each other´s bodies before. Don´t you remember that time during the ball for uncle Arafinwë´s begetting day? I still couldn´t forget it.”

“Dear, it was a hand job. After Alqualondë was our first time going all the way” his husband dropped his head, defeated. Fingon puffed out his chest, a little victory was a victory after all. And, in his marriage, that meant he was going to have the initiative in bed that afternoon, just before their cute son arrived. It was more than worth it. And Russandol´s ashamed face was too cute to let it pass.

Meanwhile, Maeglin was running through the streets, eating his breakfast and repeating that he was late to move the bypassers away. He passed before a café in his way to the forge, where a certain someone was having am early morning date with his intended. The Lord of the Golden Flower smiled at the known sight until it disappeared, remembering something from a long lost city.

“Some things never change” Laurefindil said, drinking his coffee. “He was always late for every early morning meeting Turgon had on Gondolin. He blamed it on the mines, but no one believed it. Now I see that we were right.”

“Hummm” the other elf mumbled as he ate chocolate ice cream. “Have you called me here to talk about Maeglin´s habits or are you actually going to speak about something important?”

“Yes, you are right” the golden haired captain said, swallowing hard as he gathered the grumptions to finally address the matter that brought them both there. “I called you here for something important” he took Erestor´s hand on his own, making the other froze. “We have been together for nearly fifty years…”

“It… it has only been fourty five” he babbled stupidly, his face getting red. This somehow encouraged Glorfindel, who found it very endeared. “Hasn´t… hasn´t been long enough…”

“More than enough for me. This has been some of the happier moments of my life, so…” he took a jewellery box out of his pocket, putting it in front of the raven, whose heart gave a jump. Was… was that what he thought it was? “Erestor, would you make me the honour of spending the rest of your live with me?”

“Glor… Glorfindel, I…” the councillor of Imladrys wanted to say yes, he really wanted to… but then the shadow of Ecthelion of the Fountain appeared again and his willingness disappeared. And it was not an unfounded fear, it was… too real. He knew that he looked a lot like the famous lord of Gondolin, that this relationship he was in right now wouldn´t have started if not for him, that Glorfindel wouldn´t have even looked at him if he didn´t look like Ecthelion… he just didn´t want to be the blond´s pitiful look-alike replacement. “You… you know I´m not Ecthelion, don´t you?”

“Yes, I´m positive of that” the captain said, confussed. “Why are you bringing him into this?”

“How could I not?” the younger elf continued, feeling desperation for some reason. “The reason this relationship started was because you couldn´t forget him. You… you only saw me because that jerk abandoned you in a horrible way…”

“Erestor, this has nothing to do with Ecthelion and hasn´t for a while” assured the Golden Flower. “I got over what he did to me before even asking you out…”

“But the only reason you turned your eyes at me was because I remind you of him” the captain bit his lip. It was true… at the beginning. His two loves were so close in appeareance, but, at the same time, so different in personality that it was difficult to think of Erestor as a replacement for Ecthelion. And it was better that way, it allowed him to fall in love again, for real. 

“Melmenya, I´m not tring to turn you into him, I love you for what you are”

“I´m not so sure of that” he lifted himself. “But… I will think about it… and give you an answer as soon as I came to a decision… soon, I hope.”

“Erestor…” he fled, leaving a heart aching Glorfindel in the restaurant alone. 

The councillor walked the streets of Formenos with doubt in his mind. He wanted to say yes, oh, how much he wanted to say yes, but, at the same time, he didn´t want to become some sort of replacement for another elf. And he would never be Echtelion of the Fountain, of that he was sure. He wasn´t… he simply wasn´t sophisticated enough for that and had no reason to be. He was a Feanorian after all. He knew that Glorfindel liked him for more reasons than his looks, but… but… there was always that doubt and the ghost of Ecthelion haunting his relationship wasn´t one he could banish so easily. And it caused a heartache so big that he couldn´t bear it.  
Hummm, so that was what people was referring to when they said that love was bittersweet.

“I saw you have some trouble” he turned, only to see the third son of Fëanor approaching him on the streets. From all the elves in the whole of Aman, Celegorm would be the last person anyone would come to for relationship advice, being known for only having casual encounters, but… “Do you want to talk about it?” before Erestor could add something he said. “Yes, I know, the Feanorion whore is the last person you want to talk with of relationships…”

“No, I… wouldn´t use those words” the councillor bit his lips. “Do… do you know something about… look-alike replacements?”

“Oh…” Celegorm´s eyes widened, somehow looking detracted. “I… I had some experience with that.” He licked his lips nervously. “I… once tried to marry someone because she looked alike to someone I know. It doesn´t work, I can assure you of that. They didn´t have anything in common but the appereance.”

“You… was it Luthien? Or about this usual lover of yours you talked about?” Erestor asked, suddenly interested. The blond lowered his head, clearly not wanting to talk more. “Lord Tyelkormo, did you have feelings for that person before the Doom? Was he the one the princess of Doriath looked like?”

“Feelings are for romantics, we are only increidibly sexually compatible.”

“For some reason, I don´t believe you” woow, he didn´t expect this from Celegorm. To know he was capable of having something more than casual encounters… or would be, if he stoped denying his feelings. But they were not there to talk about the blond´s relationship, this was about Erestor´s. “I don´t know if saying yes to a man who likes me because I look like his ex is a good idea.”

“Only if he knows the difference. And believe me, Laurefindil knows the difference” he shook his head. “Oh, who are you kidding? You want this, he wants this and your likeness to his former lover hasn´t matter for a long time, no?” well… Ecthelion hasn´t been mentioned for quite some years. “If he is over that idiot, what are you waiting for?”

“It´s just…”

“Hey, you love that guy, why are you missing your chance at happiness?” Erestor nodded and got up. He was decided now… decided to say yes. But before he went back to Laurefindil, he had one last thing to do.

“Thank you, Prince Tyelkormo” he bowed. “You should follow your own councel, my prince. You deserve happiness too.”

“Many would not be of the same opinion”

“But you do. And your partner might surprise you, he or she might want commitment too”

“I don´t think so” Erestor left, making Celegorm shake his head. Commitment? Love? That was for others, not for wild people like him. For Maitimo, Finno, Makalaurë and his brothers, who believed in that. Sexual compatibility and shared interests were more for him. He didn´t have much time to ponder about that, because Curufin approached with a big smile on his face. “What?”

“This was the last thing I expected from you. Giving relationship advice? When you are the less likely in all Formenos to have one?”

“Don´t blame me for trying to be useful to our loyal followers”

“I have to give it to you, you have been really useful for little Erestor” the smith crossed his arms, amused. “I´m going to the market to buy some materials for the forge, do you want to come with me?”

“Of course not, even teaching elflings to ride is better than that. Take Caranthir, he might be useful to haggle in your favour.”

“Yes…” he sat down next to his older brother, thinking about how to address a touchy subject as feelings. “Never knew Luthien looked so much like a person of your past. Your feelings must have been very strong for you to seek out a look alike to marry when you had so many pretty lovers in Beleriand already.”

“Please, there weren´t any… what are you talking about?” suddenly the words of his brother sunk in. Not about feelings, because that was absurd, but about the likeness. “You know him, have seen him a lot of times…”

“Him? Have seen you with lots of males”

“Don´t change the subject, how did you not see the likeness between Luthien and… someone that was so close to me?” that didn´t make sense, Curvo had seen Oromë hundredths of times, he should have seen the similarity. “She had the same very pointy nose, the same golden eyes and, even if her hair was black, she had the same waves…”

“Now you are talking nonsense” Curufin frowned. “I remember her very well and she didn´t have any of that. Her nose was pointy, sure, but not that much. It resembles Elu Thingol´s more than anyone. The eyes were the same strange colour of Melian´s, a dark twilight blue… Dior´s, if you want a closer reference. And her hair was straight…”

“No way” Celegorm took a step back, with a sudden pain in the chest. Did… did he got played back in Beleriand? “I remember her well, her eyes were topaz yellow.”

“Turko, are you alright?” now his brother was worried. “I know you were absorved by trying to marry her during that time, but you are talking nonsense. She didn´t look anything like you are describing and I know that for sure because I talked to some of our men that saw her back then and they gave me the same description as… Turko, are you crying?” Celegorm touched his face, not wanting to believe it. But it was true, he was crying. Crying of… heartbreak? Yes, hearthbreak. “Are you right? Do you need our nostari? Turko… Turko!!”

The blond Feanorion ran away, trying to hide his tears. Tears he couldn´t contain more because… because he just realised that he was played. It was still up to find out if he was consciously played by Luthien, but it was the same. He was hurt. Luthien… the only reason he accepted Curufin´s horrible plan about marrying Luthien was because she looked a lot like Oromë to him. Which returned him to feelings, feelings he was not supposed to have, feelings of attatchment he was too wild to have… or was he not? He was no longer sure, not after this revelation.

And perhaps, only perhaps, he deserved it. For playing with the loving couple on a perilious situation. He and his brother used Beren to get rid of that idiot Felagund, sending him to his death at the hands of Sauron and was rather forcessfull with Luthien… but the last part wasn´t entirely his fault. Political advantage and plans aside, he was rather infatuated with the princess. He certainly doubted he would have been so forcessfull about marrying her if she hadn´t had that likeness to Oromë in her face. He… he frankly missed him so much. And, on that moment, it sounded like such a great idea to have a likeness of him by his side. It was the closest thing he would get to truly be by the Vala´s side. Damn those feelings to hell!! He wasn´t supposed to have them!!

But it explained it. Explained a lot of things. One of them being why Huan left him. That doesn´t mean that the Hound didn´t reprobe of his actions, because he did, but… he was a good dog. A faithful one. And he cared about his master. Too much. He could see him pity Luthien because of what he did to her in his misguided romantic intent, but not abandoning him forever just because of that. The Hound would have eventually returned… or not. Not if he noticed Luthien was playing with his feelings and made a deal with her so she stopped.

And there was also the doubt if she had done that to him consciously or was just a defence mechanism, to gain advantage against an enemy who had deeply buried feelings or was in such a big denial that…

“Dammit” he slammed the door of his room with a bang, cleaning the tears. To no avail, because they won´t stop   
flowing. “When has this become about feelings? When did I even developed them? This wasn´t supposed to happen… this wasn´t supposed to…”

He felt on his bed, hugging his pillows. Really, he was an idiot. He should have prevented this. Nothing… Oromë suddenly appear in his room. He didn´t want to have sex now, he was too depressed for that. The feeling of being played stung, the realisation making it worse despite it having happened a lot ago. It was so stupid, he should just forget it… Oromë presed him to his chest, but made no other move. It was almost as… as if he wanted to comfort him. To offer him a shoulder to cry on. Or a chest. 

And he took the chance with both hands, his fingers gripping his clothes for dear life, tears staining them. Damn feelings, why do they have to do everything to complicated? Or so good? It was so warm…

-Later-

“Tyelkro? Tyelkro, dear, are you there?” Celegorm opened his eyes at the voice of his mother. He didn´t want to see anyone, feeling still down, but he knew her. She wasn´t going to leave without an explanation. Not after everything that snitch Curufin must have told her. He looked around to see if Oromë was still there… well, he was not on view, but he could tell he was still there. “Tyelkro, I´m…”

“Not going to leave until I have answered some questions? Yes, I know” he got out of bed, opening the door to his chamber so his amil could get in. “Whatever Curvo told you about what happened yesterday, he was exaggerating.”

“He only told me you were crying” Nerdanel explained. It had been weird, as she had only asked why he hadn´t showed up to his ridding classes yesterday. “I would have come immediately, but decided to give you some espace. You are an adult, after all, and perhaps won´t like your mother intruding in your private life.”

“I don´t”

“But if someone hurt your feelings, I would like to know. To offer some support, whatever you need to feel better” she put a hand on his shoulder. “I will always be there for you, yonya. Remember that.”

“I do”

“So…” the blond sighed, sitting down, doubting about telling her the history. If he told it in a bad way, it would end up with a very pissed off Nerdanel, which would translate into a pissed off Fëanor and probably a pissed Finwë. And that chain of reactions never ended in something good. In fact, it could end up pretty horrible. Namely a sword at the Thingol´s neck again and the whole collective of Finweans banished to Arda. In the worst (probably imaginary) case. But then again, he couldn´t say no to his mother. “Oh, woow, I… didn´t know you had a boyfriend.”

“I wouldn´t call him a boyfriend, but… an usual partner for a couple thousands of years? Yes, that´s the description of our relationship” he chuckled a bit. “It´s not like we are committed to each other…”

“Yes, of course” she knew everything about her son´s problems with commitment. “But you have feelings for him. Maybe because you spent so much time together.”

“Ammë…”

“I´m somewhat glad that you found someone to share something more than a good night, my dear” the redhead said. “It´s so, so mature of yours to have a proper lover instead of just the thousand adventures I thought you lived for.”

“But?”

“But we are not talking about your commitment problems here, no?” suddenly the expression on his mother´s face was dangerous. And she was twisting his sheets in her hands, signalling that she wanted to do the same with Luthien. And, as she was not here, the dear Feanorian mother would direct her anger towards the people closest to the princess. Like her parents… or son. “That half maia brat… I should have known she meant trouble when I heard of her.”

“Ammë, we don´t know if she did it on purpose.”

“Dearie, a maia doesn´t change forms without meaning. She saw that sadness inside of you and decided to take her chances to get your help. It didn´t work as she wanted, but that doesn´t matter, because she still played with your feelings” the sheets snapped, making him shudder. “And no one plays with any of my boys and gets away with that.”

“Ammë… mamil…”

“Good day, sweetie” Nerdanel left, probably to fan the flames of her dangerous husband´s anger. Her son, lowered his head, defeated. Could this get any worse?

“So… what was that about a half maia girl taking my appereance in Beleriand to play with you?” Oromë voice as he suddenly materialized in the room made him groan. This could definitely get much worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Maeglin has become an adolescent. Weren´t you exited? And soon he is going to start noticing girls or boys and things were going to become complicated for his parents. Also... Glorfindel and Erestor are getting married! Who wants Maeglin there? On another note, someone has realised that he is capable of romance after all. Who wants to bet on how that´s going to result? Review!!


	24. Chapter 24

“Laurefindil!! Glad to see you here!!” Galdor said when he saw the golden lord on the steps of Turgon´s house in Tirion. “Iron Hells, when was the last time we were all together?” they were not all together, Maeglin wasn´t there. And, considering he was an adolescent of fifty-one now, there was no way he was going to be here even without the present company or the protective parents. Specially not with copious amounts of alcohol waiting to be drank. “Come, have a drink!!”

“No, thank you” the blond answered, a little bit uncomfortable. He had come here to tell his friends about his upcoming wedding… would they be still his friends after what he was about to tell them? Maybe Duilin and Egalmoth, Turgon not… definitely not Turgon. “I´m not going to stay for long…”

“Why? Don´t you want to have fun?” asked an already drunk Salgant. The blond groaned at the teleri´s stupidity. Why was he even there? Did he want to torture himself? The others didn´t want him there, he should have gotten it by now. “Come on, party with us.”

“Yeah” the Tree said, putting his arm around the Golden Flower. “Ohhhh, what a face. How do you plan to find a nice girl one of this days if you put a face like that?” they all laughed again. “Girls will not be impressed by that frown.”

“In fact… I came here to tell you that I´m getting married” Lauro interrupted, making them all go silent as he showed his engagement ring to them. All but Ecthelion, who started coughing like mad. Then wolf whistles and congratulations started to sound everywhere, congratulations that wouldn´t be so sincere if they knew who he was going to marry. “I already told you, so…”

“No, no, stay!! Those are wonderful news, you should tell us everything about it!! And your fiancé!” Tuor approached, putting a cup on his hands and an arm around his shoulders. “What kind of woman managed to snag the great Laurefindil of the Golden Flower? Tell me, is she pretty? Voluptous? And her tresses? Are they as golden as yours?”

“Raven haired. And no, nothing voluptuous” he bit his lips, then got himself away from the edain. “I… I´m going to be frank, because I want to end with this as soon as I can. I´m marrying a man” everybody froze again, and not in the good way. “Yes, I admitted it. I´m gay and over pretending I´m not to please you.”

“You… you can´t be a pervert” Turgon started talking, horrified. “You are one of my great lords!! And a vanya through your mother!! You can´t be one of them!!”

“Well, I am. Scandalized? You shouldn´t worry about that, your majesty, as I gladly resind from my position as   
Lord of the Golden Flower in your court.” Glorfindel said with a sarcastic bite. “I would hate to bring shame to Gondolin with my conduct.”

“I… You… How…” before Turgon could recover his speech, the blond left the place. Once outside he could hear the screams of outrage that his former king emited as he cursed and slander him for his sexual orientation. Well, at least he won´t have to deal with him anymore. Or anyone like him inside of that house.

“Laurefindil!! Lauro, wait!!” suddenly he heard. The captain turned around only to find that his ex followed him. Ecthelion looked as dashing as ever, in the delicate beauty way that was characteristic to him, but, for some reason, he didn´t affect the other as much as before. “Lauro, have you thought about what you did? About what you are about to do?”

“Of course, I have thought of it for a long time”

“But… I can´t help but feel that you haven´t really thought about this, so…”

“Out with it, old friend, if we can call each other friends after tonight” Glorfindel said, a little bit angry. Couldn´t he be a little bit more direct?

“Lauro, aren´t you sure you aren´t taking this decision because of what happened between us back when we were in Beleriand? In the first Gondolin?” seriously? First Erestor and now Ecthelion. Everybody thought that he took his romantic decisions based on a heartbreak back thousands of years ago? “I know we shouldn´t have let ourselves go and… do something like that…”

“Back then, it was amazing. One of the best experiences I had.”

“Don´t say it out loud” the Fountain shook his head, ashamed. “I was bad, a lapse in both of our judments, am abomination of nature…”

“Too bad you think like that, I will always think about it as fond memories” he turned around, ready to leave that place and everything about Gondolin behind. 

“Wait, Glorfindel” a hand grabbed his. “I… I know I didn´t help back then, but now I truly want to” he assured, clearly worried. It was clear that his intent was to help… not that he wanted his help. “I mean, if there was a cure for me, there surely will be one for you too. I´m sure that with a nice girl and a few exercises to learn to like her…”

“It´s that what you did? Learn to like your wife?” the blond extracted his hand from his grasp. “You know, I thought that some day you will learn to accept and even like yourself as you were, but now I see that I wished too much.” He walked a few steps away. “Damn, I´m an idiot. How could I have envisioned a future with you in the past?”

“Lauro, I did something terrible back then, let me help fix it.”

“There is nothing to fix, I´m who I am. And I don´t hate myself for that. Too bad you do” the former golden flower assured. “Oh, and Ecthelion, if you are so worried about the heinous thing you did in the past, let me put your fears away. There is nothing to forgive or fix between us anymore. I have gotten over you for a long time now.” 

With that, Laurefindil walked away from his former life without a second thought. And how could he not? He now was leaving with nothing to regret.

-A few months later-

“Why can´t I go? I have already been to weddings before!!” the teen elf complained as his parents packed everything so they could get ready for the ceremony when they arrived in Tol Eresseä. 

Fingon and Maedhros looked at each other, not wanting to address the real problem there. That they have been invited to Laurefindil and Erestor´s wedding have been a surprise, as he didn´t think one of the grooms would be too enthusiastic to have them there. Then the invitation arrived and they said yes without thinking, but the problem started when they realised that they would leave Maeglin home alone for the first time in his life. And, while they trusted him and know his grandparents and uncles would be there to take care of him, that made them anxious. But they couldn´t take the boy with them, not with the danger that someone might recognize him!! Specially if someone from Gondolin decided to be there for some reason.

“Your grandfather said he needed you working this weekend on the forge” reminded him Findékano with a smile, glad to have that excuse. “And we need someone governing the house while we are not here.”

“Atto, the butler can govern the house while we are all in Tol Eresseä visiting my brother” Lómion rolled his eyes. “And haru has uncle and cousin Tyelpe with him, he doesn´t really need me.”

“Are you sure?” Maitimo intervend, trying to save it. “Remember that you are still an apprentice, yonya, and still have much to learn. You are very talented, but you lack the experience that will make you a master. If you want to be a master smith, you have to take every chance to learn, specially under my father.”

“I know, I know” the elfling… well, not so much, rolled his eyes. “I should be glad to learn under such a great smith and much more. I only… wish I could see what´s beyond the walls of Formenos” he said in a dreaming tone. “I have heard much about the woods of Tol Eresseä, the white city of Gondolin, Doriath… I want to see the world.”

“Aren´t you happy here?” asked Finno, masking his fear with a smile. Maeglin was still a child for now, but soon he was going to be an adult. They won´t be able to stop him forever if he wanted to go out of their little safety nest… and that was scary. Anything could happen to him outside it. “We… will see what we can do if you are interested when we get back, but for now you stay here, okay?”

“Sure” the boy answered, frowning. Then something came to mind. “Before I forget!!” he ran to his room and came back with a box on his hands. “Give this to Laurefindil when you arrive. He commissioned them a long time ago, but it wasn´t ready until yesterday.”

“What is it?” Maedhros opened the box and found two rings, one golden and one silver, with a topaz and gol flower and a diamond and silver one. A true work of art. Much like Vilya, now that he saw them. “Maeglin…”

“Cousin Tyelpe helped me design them and gave me directions all the time while I was forging them, but my hands were the only ones that worked on them. I think they will like them… don´t you?”

Such an irony, thought Fingon, that Maeglin of Gondolin would be the one to forge Glorfindel´s wedding rings. Even if the raven didn´t remember his past as a Lord of the White City, it was quite an irony that the one that was responsible for Lauro´s first death was also the one that would give him the bands that will seal his happiness.   
The both of them thought of that during their trip to Tol Eresseä, hoping that there was no one to deal with once they arrived. Unfortunately, the couple had invited many friends to celebrate their union, including some Fingolfinian and vanyas that were not so happy to see Feanorians in their mist. The same people that wouldn´t have showed up if the wedding had been held in Formenos, as Erestor first proposed. Tapping on his shoulder, Findékano proposed to his husband that he went to deliver the wedding rings while he tried to socialize with some of the more open minded guests.

“Finno!!” a voice made him froze. 

“Irissë” he answered, being faced for the first time in centuries by his sister. She was as lively as he remembered, still wearing only white. Even her hair was decorated only by pearls. And, by her arm, was a nér that looked at him in disgust.

“Finno, long time no see!! Did you meet Rillon? He is an old acquaintance of mine, so I decided to invite him. Don´t mind him, he is more open minded than he looks” oh, so he was disgusted by Fingon´s presence because he was gay. It was because he was kinslayer. “After the party we are going to have a little bit of fun…”

“Aren´t you a little bit old for that?” got out of his mouth before he could stop it. She looked at him in surprise, so he shook his head and put on a smile. “Never mind. How have you been, sister? Heard you have been happy from ammë and Arko…”

“Oh, that explains your reaction. They must have told you about my wild ways” she rolled her eyes on a way that made her look a lot like Maeglin. “Well, better a fun life than a boring one!”

“I…” should he ask? She looked happy enough with her way of living, but he wanted to be assured. He owed his happiness to her, after all. At least to a level. As an older brother too, he wanted to make sure she was okay with this. “I heard what happened to Maeglin, let me express my condo…”

“Ahhh, don´t talk to me about that killjoy” what? Was she really expressing about her son in that way? After what he went through? Hum, no wonder Námo handed the child to them then. “I wasted a good hundred years of my life taking care of that little rat and what do I get? It took me ages to unbound myself to his treacherous legacy!! And, even after that, his memory still haunts me.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course!! From time to time, when I´m hunting for a good night, some ask me if I shouldn´t be home taking care of my son” she sighed. “As if I didn´t have enough troubles forgetting that I once beared an unwanted child…” the woman shook her head. “Should have left him behind when I had the chance.”

“Irissë” Fingon interrupted, breathing deeply. “Do you know what happened to Lómion? Before the suicide, I mean.”

“Heard he couldn´t take a few gondolindrim having their revenge on him. Hummm, he was always a weak child, he couldn´t stand much. Didn´t surprise me that he didn´t last much in Angband. Surely he didn´t this time either.”

“Sister, you shouldn´t talk like that about your son” MY SON

“Boring” she said, pushing her hair out of her face. Then something came to her mind. “Why are you so interested?” Findékano sweated a little. What could he answer? “Let me guess, this is because your dear Maitimo also committed suicide, no? You feel bad for him for that. Totally undeserving, if you want my opinion.”

“I only believe you should have all the facts before…”

“BORING!!! Let´s talk about something else” Aredhel proposed, letting go of her friend´s arm and taking her brother away. “Hey, Finno, there was something I have wanted to ask you for quite some time: how is Maitimo in bed?”

“Wha.. what?!” he asked, scandalized. Was his little sister really asking him about his sexual life? And in such a shameless way?

“Don´t worry, I´m not going to steal him from you. Not that I can, everybody with eyes can tell that he is only interested in males” she laughed. “But I have my eyes set on a redhead back home. I mean… Rillon is good for now, but there are other fishes in the sea. Besides, they say redheads are wild in bed. I wanted to ask you if that was…”

“Look, there is Maitimo. It was wonderful to talk to you again, Irissë, but I have to go to my husband. Say goodbye to your friend from my part” he practically run towards his spouse. Maedhros was surprise to see him move so fast, risking to dirty his formal robes. “You are not going to believe who I found…”

“And look what we got here” Fingon nearly groaned. Talking about uncomfortable family members. “Weren´t you confined in your little lawless island?” Aegnor asked, looking uncomfortable like a golden haired Caranthir in his widower attire. Accarmo followed him, as always. “Why are you here?”

“The lucky couple invite us, Aikanáro” answered Fingon. He knew that his cousins didn´t like him very much since his marriage, but to comfront him in a formal occasion… “They seemed to want us here, as the family of one of the grooms is sworn to the House of Fëanor.”

“Or maybe Elrond pressed them to it. He seems awfully close to you thanks to what you did to him, poor child” they glared at each other before father and son walked away. 

The couple did the same a few minutes after, finding some place to sit, away from family members that could ruin the party. Happily, they watched the couple get bonded in the traditional noldor way. Glorfindel looked regal, with robes fit for a king, embroidered with flowers in tread of gold. Erestor was no less beautiful, with clothes made by Caranthir himself and jewels from the Feanorian forges. He looked delicate too, but in a very different way than Ecthelion would. They were very happy when they exchanged the rings…

“Maeglin would have loved to see this” Maitimo whispered to his beloved. “So bad he had to miss how happy his work makes people.”

“A little price to pay to keep him safe” the low voice of his spouse answered. “I think some day he would… he will understand.”

“Let´s hope that it doesn´t come with a cost too”

The two stopped talking when they realised Aegnor and Accarmo looking at them. What a strange peredhel, they thought, specially Maedhros. He was used to deal with half-elves, having raised two and helped with another pair, but his cousin and Andreth´s son was very different to all of them. More… elvish, if he could tell it somehow. Maybe because he had spent a significant more amount of time with elves in Tirion than with humans. He hadn´t dealed with Eärendil and Elwing enough to form a opinion about them, neither with Accarmo, but from what he saw…

“Doesn´t it reminds you to our own wedding?” Finno suddenly asked, laying his head on his shoulders. Nelyo got out of his thoughts to smiled at him.

“Our wedding… complete with the absence of the father of one of the grooms” 

“Laurefindil´s mother isn´t here either, too bad” Fingon sighed. “Wish people would be more open minded.”

“You and me both, my love, you and me both”

-Later-

Glorfindel and Erestor were kissing on their bed after consummating their marriage when the blond separated, playfully smiling at him. He proposed to open some wedding gifts, as some kind of game, guessing what was inside gift. The nér walked towards the pile, grabbing the first box he had on reach, only to discover that, much to his surprise, it came from Galdor. It had a note:

I can´t agree with the path you have chosen on principle, but I wish you luck, my friend. Congratulations of your marriage, Galdor, Lord of the Tree of Gondolin.

“Woow, he is a real friend. I should send him a thank you note as soon as the honeymoon ends” he said and took it to the bed. Before Erestor could do anything, he opened it. An apple tree sapling for their garden poked out. “Galdor loved his apple trees, had to be a great effort to part with this one.”

“Then I should write to him too” said the councillor, who loved trees. “Now, can you bring another gift so we can continue with our…” a knock on the door interrupted whatever he was going to say. “What is it now?”

“I don´t know” Laurefindil went down the stairs and opened the door, revealing two dark figures who entered his home as if they owned it. He was about to complain when… “Duilin? Egalmoth? What are you doing here? And dressed like that, of all ways.”

“Isn´t it obvious? We eloped” answered the Arch said, making the Swallow sit down in the living room. Glorfindel just stared at them as if the world just became crazy. They… they eloped? What? How? Were they a couple? Since when? “Surprised? Bet King Turgon will be when he reads the letters we left” the silver haired elf sat down, tired. “I´m tired”

“What happened here?” Lauro finally asked.

“Well, you are not the only one who knows how to hide this sort of things. We have been a couple for quite some time” Egalmoth began, still holding his boyfriend´s hand. “And when you gave your little show, it left us thinking if we shouldn´t do the same. Or something like that. So we… kind of packed up some of our things and ran off to get married.”

“Which leads us to now” Duilin added, apologetically. “Do you think you have somewhere we can stay until we find a place of our own? Please, we don´t know who else to turn to…”

“Hummm” Erestor was going to kill him for this. “Take the guest room by the end of the hallway.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hummm, poor Turgon, his lords are deserting him. Well, he deserves it for being such a jerk. And Aredhel... well, she didn´t know all the details, but even so, she should know better than to say something like that. Do you like the surprise couple? Duilin and Egalmoth will soon find themselves asimilated into the House of Elrond, good for them for having escaped Turgon. Review!!!


	25. Chapter 25

Arafinwë was having the headache of his life. There was no other way to call it, as his head seemed to be banged by one of Aulë´s hammers. And the reason for that was another fight between his mother and his wife. He groaned when the screaming began to get louder again, as another item in their war was reached. A particularly touchy one, by the way: His father, the former High King Finwë.

After his term of banishment was complete, Finarfin and his family expected him to come back to live in Tirion with them, but apparently the nér found himself so comfortable between the Feanorians that decided to stay there with his firstborn and his children. He still returned in special ocations, but always went back to that accursed island. When his loyal third son tried to make him see reason, the other answered that he would gladly return to Tirion… after he had tended to some troubles there. His later missives were meet with the same answeres, as were Nolo´s and their family member´s. Not even Indis own pleading for her husband to return were heard.

That was until Eärwën somehow managed to get a promise of an early return from the former monarch. During a whole thirty minutes, he believed everything was going to be alright. That his father was going to go back and show the unity of the noldor royal family, that he still had the backing of the old regime and everything else… that was until he read the letter that was shown to him by his wife. In the paper, Finwë stated that he would be glad to come back if they allowed Formenos to have an ambassador in court to keep their interests. An ambassador from the rulling family. In other words, a Feanorion.

“We can´t allow that!!” Indis screamed, finishing with her son´s patience.

“Oh, of course we can” Finarfin said, backing his wife´s position. His mother frowned deeply at this. “Look, it´s not like he is asking for Fëanáro to return to court, father only want to have one fo them here, maybe to keep a connection to his son and grandsons.”

“Having kinslayers at court…”

“That´s not necessarily going to happen” the king continued, putting a hand on his face. “We can give them permission to send an ambassador to court, but put our own conditions to accept said elf in our midst. Even father would find that okay, considering how people here are with kinslayers.”

“Hummm” Indis crossed her arms. She didn´t appreciate being contradicted by her own son, but could see the advantages of that point of view. “Very well. What would be those conditions you talk about?”

“First, no kinslayers. Elwë has barely begun to forgive father for pointing a sword at his neck, a lot of that because of Olwë´s intervention. We don´t need more troubles with him. Second, that person must have some diplomatic training, preferably for a few hundreds of years, but any is accepted. Third, obviously no Child of Mandos…” Arafinwë continue with his list, making more and more clausules that exclude any member of his half-brother´s close family except one. “That leaves them with only one possible candidate: Tyelpe.”

“Tyelpe, eh?” both Earwën and Indis pondered that option. 

Telperinquar was an adequate politician and sweet to boot, but belonged more inside of a smithy than in the court rooms. He also was too believing, too prone to believe in what people said, something that was not too good in an ambassador. He was a little bit less credible after his encounter with Annatar, but… still too much. Besides that, his credibility was a bit damaged because of the Sauron thing with the rings. So much that some people considered him a kinslayer by association, something a lot of detractor could use to banish him back to Formenos and by extention the Feanorians. And Finwë too.

“Fine, I accept an ambassador if those conditions are placed” the former High Queen said, crossing her arms. Wouldn´t be too difficult to deal with Tyelpe, he was the least political mind between all the descendants of her monster step-son.

“Me too” Earwën accepted too, promising inwardly that she would lend a hand to the smith in all she can. Her own father had a lot of trouble with the realms of Thingol and Ingwë when he decided to accept same sex marriages and adoption, but eventually was really beneficed by the population grow and income talents that it eventually created; so she was now determined to get that too for the noldor of Tirion.

“All set then, I will go write a letter to atar, then” the king escaped the room, hoping that the fighting over that had finally died. Unfortunately for him, the two women were interested in everything but to finish their quarrel.

“We seem to have gotten to an impairment, mother dear” the silver haired queen said, standing tall, conducting herself as a queen. 

“Too bad” Indis answered, doing the same. “But I think that, soon enough, we shall leave it. Don´t you?”

The both of them walked away.

\- In Formenos –

“It appears you were right, atar. Arafinwë accepted the deal for your return” Fëanor said over dinner, looking around his table to all the family members congregated there before handing Finwë the letter. “The real question here is: who to send?”

It was indeed a difficult decision. The no kinslayers rule wipped out nearly all of his family and certainly all of his sons, so the younger generation would have to take charge of the difficult post offered. In Tirion, away from where the adults could provide immediate help. So, the one that went to represent the family was going to be alone there outside of Finwë, able to trust no one besides him. Who would take the task?

Maeglin was ruled out as soon as the issue was brought up. They said that they couldn´t put the heir´s heir in harms way and that he wasn´t even a legal adult yet, but the truth was that too many people would recognize him as the Traitor of Gondolin, which would make them unwilling to work with him. And Turgon would be murderous. Felmë and his little brother, Mistafinwë, were barely out of their baby years and not even an option. Besides, they were more interested in their music than politics, much like Maglor. Tyelpe should be the obvious option as an adult for some centuries and a seasoned politician, but with his credibility damaged and reputation… he would be expected, which made him prone to manipulations. And he refused to leave his forge for the rat´s nest that was the capital. Muinafinwë and Rátissë were both options, the girl more than her lonely schoolar of a brother with all her political training at her grandafather and great grandfather´s knees, but… the leave of even one would put Caranthir in a full paranoid mood. And there was the issue that she was a little hothead and young.

Too bad they didn´t have many options.

“Rátissë should go” Fëanor finally conceded, sighing. Moryo lifted his head, trying to swallow his own sensation of panic. Seeing it from a practical point of view, his little girl was the best option. She was smart and witty… she trained for this from the moment she decided that this was what she wanted. And, more than that, could do it. She was as strong as Haleth, more than him. She could survive in Tirion´s court. “Moryo…”

“I…” he still doubted to give his consent.

“You don´t think I can do it?” his daughter suddenly caught his attention. He stared into the lovely young woman he had raised. “Because I will tell you right now that you are mistaken!! I can do it!! And will!!”

“It´s not that, my dear”

“Really? Because I believe you think me incapable of succeeding in court” she got up from the table, glaring at her father and everybody on the table. “Is it because I´m only two hundred years old? Or because of my character? You think I will screw up?! Because I´m determined to prove you wrong!! All of you!!”

“Issë…” the girl stormed out of the room, something rude she couldn´t get away with doing in Tirion. Caranthir sighed, did she always have to make everything so difficult?

It wasn´t that he hadn´t doubts, because, being realistic, he had. Rátissë was not Haleth´s daughter or his father´s granddaughter for anything. While she could be called pretty, she wouldn´t be called the “fairiest of people”. At least on appeareance, because she was no Arwen. Much like her grandmother Nerdanel, her true beauty was on her mind. Something he didn´t think the young néri on the capital would see. Not yet, at least. Of course, she could become a beauty with the correct things, but… her temperament would be a problem. It seemed to have straight from the haladrim chiefthain or, worse, Fëanor himself. And that worried him.

“She will be alright” Finwë assured him, looking straight at his worried grandson. “She might have a temperament to rival your father´s, but she knows how to taim it. And understands that it´s a problem if she lets that out on the capital.”

“Yes, but…”

“I will be watching her closely” the first High King promised. “Rátissë has the best political mind I have seen, she only needs to be nurtured into the politician she can be. This is a great chance for her, Moryo.”

“I know, grandfather, but she is my daughter. One of the few things I have from my late wife” he said with a very serious expression. “I´m entitled to worry about her whatever I want, considering what she is going to face there.”

He retired too, needing to think. When Rátissë was born, he had been expecting another boy. The elf was surprised when he was told he had a girl and his first thought as the midwife put his daughter in his arms had been to call her Míriel. She was, after all, his father´s first granddaughter and Fëanor would have liked that. But he stopped himself before that. He didn´t want to bring a bad omen over his little girl, not there in Beleriand, and… he wanted to give her her own name. So she would be her own woman, independent of the memory of the Broideress Queen that lost her life bearing her son. And he was sure she would be a woman who excelled… much like her own mother.

Now she had that chance and he didn´t know what to do. If let her go or not. All because… because he was so scared to lose her or that something could harm her that he was practically frozen in terror at the thought of her in the court of Tirion. So he walked around Formenos, trying to reach a decision. Could he in good conscious deny her this? There was a point in life where all elves have to leave the nest, as much as he didn´t want that. This was her opportunity, why not let her seize it? If only he didn´t feel this much fear…

“Issë dear, can you come with me?” he asked once he returned home when the doorstep of her chambers.

“Are you here to tell me that I´m not ready or that I´m going to screw up because of a damn temper tantrum? Because if you do, you can very well do it from that place.”

“No, I want to show you something” with her interest perked, the girl followed her father to his workroom, where he, Muino and others weaved, sewed and embroidered the clothes Formenos was so famous for. There, Caranthir signalled a big wardrobe. “I worked on it myself. From the fabric to the last thread. I was sparing it for your wedding day, but… guess you will need it more now.”

“Wedding day? Ewww” she mussed as she opened the wardrobe. There, alone, sat the most beautiful dress she had ever laid eyes on. It was scarlet, as red as blood or as the banner of the house of Fëanor, with gold thread embroidery in a star theme. “This is awfully Feanorian, don´t you think?”

“Well, you are Feanorian. And, if you are going to be our ambassador in court, better to dress the part” Moryo smiled weakly, giving his blessing. “Just be careful, daughter. Many would want you to fail in this.” She picked it out, putting it over her body. So beautiful. “So, do you like it?”

“This is the most beautiful thing you have done for me” she answered, putting it away to give her father a hug.   
“Thank you, thank you, thank you. Both for the confidence and the dress.”

“You are welcomed”

Rátissë stared at the dress, promising to wear it when she entered in Tirion. The message both her presence and it on her would transmit would be obvious, the Feanorians are back. It was a promise she remembered when she was on the ship to the capital, about to arrive in the court of her grand uncle with her great grandfather.

“Princess?” one of the maids she brought from Formenos, young enough to not be directly involved in any kinslaying, appeared to get her ready for her entrance. “We are about to arrive in the port of Tirion, my lady.” She opened her mistress wardrobe. “What dress do you plan to wear today? If I might be so bold, a white one will look well on you. It denotes modesty and…”

“I will wear the red one” she signalled, brushing her raven locks. Another maid was supposed to make this, but she was late. And an ambassador couldn´t be late.

“Are you sure, princess? The red one can be…”

“I will wear that one, with the set of jewellery in the box directly under it and the slippers on the same colour” she ordered, her mind set. It would probably sound like a dare, as everything she separated for that particular entrance was market with the Feanorian star, but as of now, she wouldn´t give a damn. She will enter Tirion and her political career proudly wearing the symbol of her family, her head held high. Whatever the idiots who followed Finarfin say, they could suck it up.

-In the port-

“This is so exiting. It will be so good to see Tyelpe again” Queen Earwën said to her husband as they waited for the ship from Formenos. “I have already contacted some of our smiths, so they could learn from him. They were so eager that some of them were packed already before the day was over.”

“As if any respectable smith would be eager to learn Sauron´s methods” Indis answered her daughter-in-law, at her son´s other side. “We are here to receive my husband, any unwanted baggage he brings with him should be ignored.”

Arafinwë sighed, when was this war going to end? He didn´t have much time to ponder in his current headache inducing problem, because another one just came down from the ship supposedly carring his father and grand nephew. Finwë got out of the veseel, accompanied not by the tall innocent smith he remembered, but by an equally tall young woman dressed in the colours of the House of Fëanor. Everybody was shocked by her, including his wife and mother. Who was she? They didn´t know anything about her except… except that she must be a member of the House of Fëanor, because of her eyes. Those steel grey eyes that all kinslayers shared. Finarfin nearly moaned when he saw some of the same fire that burned in his half-brother´s own eyes in hers.

“Yonya” Finwë said when he was in front of his son, the young maiden right by her side. “Allow me to introduce you to my great granddaughter and your grandniece.”

“Your Grace and uncle” the girl said in a tone that could be as respectful as it was mocking. “I, Rátissë Caranthiriel, ambassador of Formenos, thank you for your welcome in your court. I´m sure that together we will be able to overcome the problems that drove our family apart, as is the desire of great grandfather.”

“I´m sure we will” the golden haired noldor answered, a little bit late because of the surprise. When did Caranthir had a daughter? And why no one informed him of that? Dammit, he must have sent informants to his half-brother´s feud before. “Niece”

The girl bowed again and left towards the chambers that were assigned to her for her stay in Tirion… oh, no. That was surely going to be uncomfortable. They have been expecting a male smith, not a lady, so the chambers were not prepared for a young woman in the least. Thankfully, his wife was already on the move.

“Dear niece, if you don´t mind, we will like you to have tea with me and my ladies” the queen offered while making a sign to one of her ladies so she could run and order the servants to change the rooms to one fit for a young lady. “I would like to know you better.”

“Me too, aunt” she responded with education, but mischief in her eyes. A mischief that was realised when she waslked in front of Turgon and his family. “Oh, noble Tuor, great to meet you” the man paled when she addressed him directly. “I wanted so much to meet another of Haladin heritage apart from my brother and me.”

“Ha… Haladin?” oh, no, please, let this not be what he was thinking. “Then you are…”

“Yes, my brother Muinafinwë and me are the children of chieftain Haleth, secretly wife of Caranthir Feanorion. I was born in Beleriand” there was a collective gasp around. “Your grandfather, my cousin Haldan, was such a good friend of mine growing up that I couldn´t resist greeting you personally.”

“I… am glad to greet you too, cousin” Valar, Idril and Turgon were going to KILL him.

“We should be good friends” and she walked away from the poor human.

Meanwhile, king Arafinwë felt his brain doing a short circuit. Beleriand? Beleriand?!! Caranthir had children in Beleriand and he was not informed?! Why hasn´t Accarmo said anything about them? Or Tyelpe, when he was in Tirion? This could be a big problem, specially because this heirs of Fëanáro were higher in the inheritance line than the smith, despite being much younger, and could plot to get the throne. He had to watch that girl closely from now on, problably reassume contact with his wicked half-brother…

Indis was glaring at the girl. Dammit, just when her plans seemed to be working just fine, another obstacle arrived. She had already made a strategy to deal with innocent, nice Tyelpe, but now… now she had to work on the way. She wasn´t fooled by her sweet smile, this peredhil brat was a viper. A viper that learned courtly intrigue from Fëanor himself and shouldn´t be underestimated.

Earwën was having the same thoughts as she walked away with the girl. She wanted to turn the ambassador into an easy ally, something that has been crushed by the arrival of this young woman. Mentally, she addressed everything she knew of Caranthir, trying to make a bew strategy. Maybe she should include the lady Rátissë into her sewing circles? Or invite her to more teas? Only time will tell, but she had to win this girl´s friendship and fast, before Indis started working.

Another person watching was Accarmo, interested. He had met a handful of peredhil in his life, having lived in Beleriand for some years before coming to Aman with his grandfather after the Last Alliance, but none like that. He admired Eärendil and Elwing a lot, dreaming specially of a marriage like theirs. A marriage he hoped he could have with another like him. Now this young, pretty much like himself peredhel girl arrived and he had hope… of something like that. Maybe this was fate?

Rátissë could read them like a book, smiling inwardly. So far, her political training was working. And soon, they will learn how much. Besides, they were being stupid. A throne? Enemisty? Friendship? Love? She wasn´t interested in anything like that. Relationships were useful, but I the game of politics, her game, they won´t maintain stable. And she definitely didn´t need a man limiting her movements. She was here to be the voice of her people and that was what she was going to do. Everything else was secondary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New developments are made and Rátissë enters the court of Tirion to shake it to the ground. What is she going to do next? Surely she will cause Arafinwë and company many more headaches than now. What do you think? Review!!


	26. Chapter 26

“It´s finished, my lady” the painter said, stepping away from the full sized canvas. Rátissë finally moved, feeling all her stiff body relaxing. She then walked to stare at the portrait of her in her Feanorian dress. She looked really stunning in her would be wedding dress. A reminder of her first day in Tirion for all eternity.

“Thank you, master Ceomon. You have done me a great service” she congratulated the painter as a maid handed a bag full of coin to him. “I think I´m going to hang it on the receiver, just below the golden eight pointed star”

She smiled mischeviuosly as one of her maids shook her head. Since her arrival in Tirion, she had done many things that would probable not look very good on an ambassador… inside her own house, where only her and a limited amount of people she trusted could see. Like moving into the former Feanorian mannor even when her chambers at the palace were ready and taking out of the storage the Feanorian regalia that had been gathering dust there, mounting a display in the ballroom and living room. And the whole hanging a portrait of herself where everyone that entered the house can watch her memento to her father´s family… well, she was there to bring the Feanorians back, no? Besides, the face Arafinwë and Indis were going to put when they saw the decoration was totally going to be worth it.

“Oh, sweetheart, it´s a beautiful painting” Queen Earwën said when she entered, accompanied by one of her ladies. “Every lady should have a portrait made of herself at least once in her life. It makes her remember the good old times.”

“Yes, indeed” the girl said, smothering the bodice of her dress. “I was just remembering the good old times in Formenos, when I can count on my father and brother for everything… well, everybody had to leave the nest at a time. And I really want to make everything better for my people back home.”

“It´s a commendable goal, my dear, wish all young elves had the same vision as yours”

“Thank you, my queen” the peredhel offered a seat, which the woman rejected. She won´t tarry for long. “May I ask why you are here, your grace? Not that I dislike having you here, but if you wanted to give me an invitation to a tea party or another social engagement, you could have very well sent a messanger.”

“And losing the opportunity to congratulate you for your incredible decoration of this old house? Of course not” the nís was of the opinion that Rátissë´s taste in interior decorations was awful, but she couldn´t be mean with the peredhel. Not if she wanted her friendship or alliance in court. “I brought you something. It´s from the court´s modist, embroidered by me and my ladies ourselves. My lady” she signalled her companion. “Please”

The woman walked to the front, opening the package before the girl. It contained a dress in the old doriathrim sinda style, purple and with small star jewels sewed to the bodice. It was accompanied by slippers in the same colour and small flower shaped diamond hair ornaments to put into her tresses. It must have all been very pretty, to anyone that was not her, she meant. She had grown up seeing her relatives work on their respective crafts, she had a good eye for quality. And the qulity of the Eight Pointed Star was beyond Tirion´s possibility. Even on his worst days and less time, Caranthir could work a better fabric and embroider and let´s not talk about what Fëanor and his gang could do with the jewels. Damn, even little Maeglin could work better gems than this.

“You are going to look lovely in this on the masquerade this weekend” Earwën´s voice returned her to reality. The peredhel stopped herself from groaning. She didn´t want to go to Finarfin´s awful pretend party, but business were business. “If you don´t have another idea for your costume, that´s it.”

“No” it was a lie, of course, but she couldn´t tell that to the queen. Neither could she reject her gracious offering. At least not to her face. “Thank you, queen Earwën. I was out of ideas until you came.”

“Out of formalities when we are alone or nearly alone. I´m your aunt, girl, we should act more like family.” 

“Of course” she returned the smile offered by the teleri, knowing full well that she only wanted her alliance regarding to Formenos. Well, she won´t sell her alliance so cheap. “I´m sure I will enjoy my costume of… elf maiden?”

“Please, don´t tell me you don´t recognize it” the older female was surprised. “What little girl born after the Age of the Trees hasn´t fantazised about being Luthien Tinúviel for a night?” one that grew up in Formenos or was part of the Feanorion family where she was persona-non-grata, that´s one. And even if the woman hadn´t played with her uncle, she wasn´t her type of heroine. Her mother was. “Thingol and his family are going to be there too. I´m sure they would be thrilled to see a Feanorian paying homage to their late daughter.”

Or practically crawling desperate before them, supplicating for their forgiveness. And maybe it was a misguided effort from the queen to stop the hostilities between the House of Fëanor and Doriath, but this Formenorian planned to keep her pride. No, she was going to go in her own terms. Besides, she wasn´t going to doll herself out for Thingol, his wife and their brood. Or for anyone. She was a damn Feanorian and Haladin, not a sinda or telerin flower.

“I will be honoured to meet the king of Doriath” she said before bidding the queen goodbye. Satisfied of having gotten rid of Earwën, the peredhel girl walked to the room where she had her palantir. It was a new one, specially made for her when she told her grandfather she was going to Tirion. 

“Rátissë? Issë, my dear, how are you?” Morifinwë Carnistir was, as his daughter thought, the first to pick up the call. Her brother was behind him, holding a big contability book. Trust Muino to keep the finances up to day while their father worried.

“Atto, you look horrible” the nís commented, smiling at him. “You have rings on your rings around the eyes.”

“Try to sleep with your only daughter far away and in the middle of a nest of vipers” he answered with a tiny smile. “Please tell me that you are alright, child. If not, I´m going there and to hell with what Arafinwë…”

“I´m fine, atto, don´t need help. I´m great at this, after all” she caressed the fabric she still had in her arms. “By the way, it´s what I asked you guys to make finished? I need it for the end of the week.” 

“Of course, it will be sent this afternoon. You will enter that danceroom like a true queen, my daughter.”

“Thank you, atto”

“You are welcome” They talked a bit more before Rátissë had to hang up the palantir to make some other things. Preparations for the costume party, if they could be called that way. And the day of the party…

“King Thingol, Queen Melian, I didn´t thought you would accept our invitation. And you brought Elured and Elurin with you!! How are you, dears?” the twins gave him an unamused look. Apparently, none in the royal family of Doriath was thrilled at the thought of a Feanorian in a court of Valinor and came expressedly to voice their displeasure.

“Could be better” Elwë answered for his great grandsons. “If you and your husband haven´t invited a kinslayer to your house, dear niece.”

“She is not a kinslayer”

“So now it´s a she, eh? A Feanorian loyalist that was sent here expressedly to deal with us. And how could she be innocent, when all in that dammed island are guilty? Or associated with the guilty in some way.”

“Uncle, the ambassador is innocent of all four kinslayings. It was one of the requisites we put for her post here in the court of Tirion” Earwën explained, trying to calm down her relative. At the same time, she felt that she commited a great mistake by asking Rátissë to come dressed as Lúthien. The Doriathrim king might take it as an insult for the niece of Celegorm Feanorion to disguise as his late daughter.

“Like I said, no one is innocent in that damn place. And, even if she didn´t participate, she was raised in the believe that they were doing the right thing. That we deserved what happened to us.” He crossed his arms. “I wouldn´t put over her to organize a kinslaying…”  
“She isn´t like that.”

“I will judge that, dear niece” he turned around. “By the way, where is that precious girl? I would like to know the Feanorian who had enough guts to come here alone with a handful of non combatant servants.”

“She must be somewhere around…” Earwën shut up when Rátissë finally entered the room, stealing the breath of more than one elf. The Queen happened to be between them, when she saw the dream of orange silk she was wearing instead of the dark lavender dress she gifted her earlier in the week.

Well, at least the girl wasn´t going to meet Thingol dressed as Lúthien Tinúviel. Because she was dressed in a flowing flame like silken thing that waved around her body, changing it´s tones as if it was really a fire. In her hair, many ornaments of rubi and amber were strategically located between her braids. Her mask was also a work of art, moulded so realistically that one could think they were seeing Arien´s own face… all complemented by a big golden eight pointed star in the neck of the girl, holding her clothes together.

“Dear Queen Earwën, how great is to be here. Do forgive me for not wearing the costume you gifted me, but a few days later I was gifted this amazing one by my father and decided that I couldn´t let so much effort go to waste.”

“It´s okay, you will have many chances to wear the dress I gifted you” the teleri said, thinking that she could wait sitting the moment she would put in something made by her and her ladies having Caranthir as a father. Hell, the clothes she had already gifted to her was probably gathering dust somewhere. “Rátissë, I want to introduce you to King Elu Thingol, the ruler of Doriath, his wife, the lovely Queen Melian and their heir´s heirs, Princes Elúred and Elurin. Uncle, aunt, cousins, my grand niece from Formenos, Princess Rátissë of the House of Fëanor.”

“Charmed, I guess” the silver haired elf said, looking at her from head to toe. As if he was looking   
down at her. “May I suppose that you are…”

“Caranthir´s daughter” she answered, sustaining their glares of disdain. “I never participated in any kinslaying, if that´s what you are asking… now that I remember, I almost participated on one. Just that it wasn´t on Beleriand, but here is Valinor. When was it?” she patted her chin as Thingol went livid. Was she really going to go that way now? “Yes, I remember now. It happened when I was a child and my uncle Celegorm organized a hunting trip with his ridding class.”

“Rátissë, I don´t think this is the moment to address old injuries. Specially that kind” Earwën tried to stop it before it became a political mess. “Let´s talk about something else. Like that dress your are wearing, dear niece. It makes you look like Arien in person!!”

“Thank you, aunt. And you look a lot like the Lady Eonwyn from the tales” she complimented the queen. “And King Elwë and his family are… a family of dwarves?”

“Numenorean royalty”

“So that´s why you looked so similar to Pharazon!! I thought it was only a coincidence” the nís accepted the cup of wine her aunt offered her. “It a very realistic costume, considered the ego you are famous to have and the retrograde politics of your realm, so restrictive that...”

“I protect my people from the blasphemous ways of your people…”

“How? Ordering kinslaying and childslayings from your comfortable Throne in Doriath?” she showed her teeth with a smile. “You are so proud of your daughter Lúthien, of how she and Beren managed to steal a silmaril from the Iron Crown that you never considered how much she hurt so many people for her love. How she played with my uncle Celegorm…”

“I have heard enough” Thingol stormed off. Followed by Melian and the twins. Rátissë calmed herself down looking at the queen. She knew that she would be scolded later by both her and Finwë, but it was totally worth it. Normally she wouldn´t be so forcessful with a foregein dignitary, but that prude would never be their ally. Besides, she knew he was only there to humiliate her if it was possible. She wasn´t going to give him the chance. 

“You really have to do it?” Earwën asked with a cup of wine in her hand.

“The man sent assassins after my family my whole life, he deserved at least a bit of humiliation for that” she shook her mane. “I´m a little bit hungry, let´s eat something, shall we?”  
She walked away towards the food table to take a few bites, then started a friendly conversation about the taxes with an influential Lord, in an attempt to lower them down a bit for small provinces. She was about to get to the next, the Treassury Secretary of Arafinwë´s gabinet, but was stopped by someone dressed as a haladin…

“Lady Rátissë” Accarmo said, trying to swallow his nervousness. Somewhere near, his father Aegnor nearly choked on wine seeing his son near his half-cousin´s daughter. “You are a vision of beauty. May I have a dance?” 

“No” she rejected him. “And if you excuse me, I have to talk to your grandfather´s treasury secretary before he runs off. Have a good night, cousin.”

Accarmo deflated, wallowing in her rejection. Why did he thought approaching her in such a direct way was going to be a good idea. It was just that… she looked so beautiful in that dress that he just had to ask… Aegnor approached her, putting an arm around him. His boy had still so much to learn, specially in the matters of the heart. Oh, how much he wished Andreth was there with him to orientate their son too.

-In Formenos-

“How was your day?” Finno asked Maeglin, who just arrived from the house for dinner. Nelyo was at the table too, eating some bread as his husband and son talked. “I heard you have been making blades on your own now. Did you make some today? I was thinking about ordering a new sword from your for…”

“Atto, what is a Child of Mandos?” the plate of salad Fingon was about to pass to his child came crashing into the ground while Nelyo coughed out the piece of bread he had on his mouth. “Atto, atya? Did I say something I shouldn´t?”

“Where… did you heard those words?” the redhead asked as soon as he recovered. He was surprised that the boy had even heard that way to call people like him, as no one in Formenos had ever used that derogatory term to refer to significant part of the population.

“At the port” what? What was Maeglin doing at the port? Both of the parents were thinking. “Haru sent me to pick some materials brought from Tirion. There I saw some merchant picking on one of the port officials, one of the new ones. I asked what´s the matter and dealed with it myself. Then somehow the merchant threw and insult to my mother, to which I responded that I didn´t have one, just two fathers. And he started to scream and to whip his hands, calling me horrible names, including Child of Mandos, and saying that I was probably an orc before” he frowned. “What´s an orc?”

“An orc… it was a kind of creature of Morgoth you won´t see in your life” technically, he had already seen it, but those were memories he hoped his son never remembered. “I remember them from Middle Earth, they were hard enemies. And horrible in appereance. Dark skin, crooked pointy teeth…” he shook his head. “Wouldn´t like you to face them now.”

“Why? I have always been a good swordsman, I can take a few of them”

“You are underestimating them”

“I don´t think so, my abilities are one of the best in my class” Maitimo sighed, this boy was a little bit too arrogant. Maybe he should lower his ego before it causes him any harm. “But, if that´s how an orc is, why did that merchant said that I was an orc in the past?”

“Well, that… that´s why some people think about people that are called Children of Mandos” Findékano gulped, looking at his husband. “They are… emmmm… were adult elves that, due to certain circumstances, had to be returned by Námo as babies. It´s the case of persons who suffered such a heavy trauma that they couldn´t be healed in the usual ways.”

“I get it, but… why did he said that I was one of such children?”

“My son, you know that a nér and a nís are needed to conceive a baby, no?”

“Yeees”

“So you know that you are not of our bodies, even if you are of our souls” Maedhros assured him with Fingon´s backing, making sure Maeglin was certain that he was their son, no matter what. “It´s usual for couples as us, that couldn´t have children of their own bodies, to adopt Children of Mandos. We raise them as our own.”

“Like you did with me” Lómion wasn´t surprised by this. He had known since his parents talked to him about reproduction that he wasn´t the biological son of his parents, he had come to terms with that long ago. He loved his fathers and they him. He didn´t need whatever past he had… but that comment about orcs and other things regarding his precedence had shaken that believe a bit. “Was I…”

“Of course not!! Orcs were a perversion of elvendoom created by Morgoth!! You are not and have never been one of them!!” Nelyo said, anger in his face. “Whatever that idiot merchant said is utter bullshit and nothing more!!”

“Nelyo, calm down” Finno chastised his husband, putting his hand over his.

“Then… do you know who was I? Before… whatever happened to me that landed former me in such a state that he needed a fresh start from everything, I mean.”

“Do you really want to know?” Findékano asked, his eyes glassy. Most Children of Mandos didn´t know their past, even the ones that were reaching adulthood by now. The parent´s either. In fact, only Maeglin´s family was ever informed of his precedence. And Fingon knew that they could always shield them in that… politic of the adoption, but he didn´t want to lie to his son. If Maeglin wanted to know about Aredhel, then he will give him that information. Maitimo might not like it, but he will support him.

“I…” the boy thought hard before answering. Did he really wanted to know? He already knew from history books the surface of what happened to his atya when he was a prisoner in Thrangorodrim. Did he really want to know what happened to himself, probably for thousands of years? Torture, death… “No, I don´t want to”

“Yonya, you don´t need to hide your curiosity just for our sakes…”

“I´m not” the smith assured. “I´m fine as I am and trauma is not something I really need, so… let´s forget it, right? I might be a Child of Mandos, but you made me your son. That´s what really mattered.”

“It is, doesn´t it?” the raven and redhead looked at each other and then their kid with love. “Let´s talk about something else, okay?” Finno put a mischievious face. “How is your love life going? Have someone touched your heart yet?”

“What?! No… no!! How could you believe that?!” he went all red, signalling that he was lying. It was a little worrisome, considering how it was like the last time Maeglin fell in love, but… they trusted him. They have raised him well, he was a good boy. “There… there might be someone… but… it´s impossible… we are too closely related. And he… shows no interest.”

“Wait, closely related?” Again? Well, they were no one to talk, they were also too closely related in Turgon´s rulebook. “You know you are not blood related to us” at least not how he thought he was. And he was still Findékano´s blood nephew. “As long as HE is not married.” The blush on Maeglin´s cheeks went dark. “Oh, you didn´t realise you said HE?”

“Yeah, well… I never felt attraction to anyone, at least not until I… got close to them. Like my best friend Linien” the parents were surprised. Yes, they have noticed that Maeglin had a short crush on the elfling he used to play and talk the most, but he had gotten over it soon enough. Nothing of the obsessive personality he displayed in Gondolin have been shown then. “I… it took me a time to realise that I only found attractive people I share bonds with. Friends and the like.”

“Sounds like a problem” 

To Findékano, it was enlightening. If Maeglin had his sexuality conditioned by those affective bonds and has been deprived of them most of his adult former life, the boy might have become obsessed with the first person he felt them for. Namely Idril, with whom he spent time with after Aredhel´s death and formed the first deep bond over the shared trauma of losing their mother. A budding friendship that was ruined by unrequired feelings arousing. It must have been crushing back then, but… maybe now Maeglin had the opportunity to have a healthy relationship with someone. Of the other person agreed with it.

“You think this boy might be interested in a relationship?” asked Nelyo, who was a little bit worried. His son was little less than ten years below his maturity, that feelings aroused was not strange. It was natural… but he would have preferred for them to wait until he reached it.

“I don´t know”

\- In Curufin´s house –

“Tyelpe!! Dinner is served!!” the Feanorion climbed the stairs to his son´s room. He was late for dinner, something that has become usual of late. He didn´t know why, the boy was still very punctual. He opened the door without thinking. “Tyelpe, dinner is… That´s beautiful. It´s a ring?”

“Ahhhh, yes… I… I was thinking of… making rings again, as I never formally swore or made any oath or…” he covered the papers with his hands, his face flushing. Curufin smiled knowingly, crossing his arms against the door. “I´m not goin to get away with this, aren´t I?”

“Na” the older elf approached. “Tell me about this mysterious boy, will you?”

Inwardly, Curufin was glad that his son was considering dating again. He had been very supportive when his son told him that he liked men and think whatever boy he chooses would be very lucky, despite the whole Annatar issue and the rings. Huh, Annatar. Sauron. Only his name made his blood boil. He knew from Tyelpe´s mouth that nothing serious ever happened between them, that they have only flirted and on one memoral occasion kissed, but… that bastard practically ripped away any confidence his boy had on himself and his trust in love. His desire to even try. Only for that he desired the fallen maia the slowest and most painful death possible. So he was glad for this. Glad his Tyelpe was finally healing from that toxic relationship. Finally learning to love again.

“Tell me over dinner, okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, someone put Thingol in his place, no? And poor Accarmo, he is really trying, but his efforts might be in vain. Well, at least Aegnor will be there to comfort him after he get his heart broken. On another note, little Tyelpe is getting illusioned again. Guess with who?
> 
> Apart from that, can you guess the announced crossover I´m going to make for the next long work? Put your guesses in the messenges and I will announce the winner in the next short work of this series. Announce: We are reaching the final parts and something will happen soon to shake the peaceful life our favourite elves, so please, be warned. Guess What?  
> Review!!


	27. Chapter 27

“What´s happening there?” asked Elúred when he and his brother arrived at their cousin Finarfin´s palace in Tirion. A loud clash of swords was sounding in the training yard, as a group of three cadets clashed with a single opponent. An opponent that was truly kicking their asses with a longsword.

“Lady Feanorian is giving some of the newbies a class” the twins received as an answer.

Lady Feanorian, the nickname the whole of Tirion had for the Ambassador of Formenos after living with them for ten years. She was very well known now in the capital for her growing influence in court, her smart proposals of reformes in court, her fieriness… to some people it was like having a young Fëanor back in the royal palace. And it was scary for some, great for others. Specially when she defended the rights of former kinslayers or those with different sexuality. Children of Mandos were another highly controversed point she liked to participate in.  
She also gave more fight to the guards of the Arafinwean court than half of Glorfindel´s students.

“It´s good, don´t you think?” Accarmo suddenly appeared with a dumb smile on his face. The twins felt the need to roll their eyes. Ten years trying and he still didn´t got the message? Well, apparently not, because he was dressed in a training attire and had a sword on his belt… something he had only touched sparcely during his time in Aman until that dark haired imp arrived.

“You are mad if you think that girl is going to give you the time of the day” Elúred said, his sibling nodding quickly behind him. “Couldn´t you see that she is not interested in the slightiest? Even less than that?”

“Don´t blame me because you can´t see her charm” the Arafinwean answered, walking to the arena. The cadets were still licking their wounds, while the young maiden cleaned her training sword. Was it the twin´s imagination or it had blood? Must be a memory of the kinslaying, as she looked quite a lot like her father.

“Better go there, make sure his sense of romance doesn’t end with his life” Elúrin talked, trying to remind his brother that Accarmo was their friend. This one groaned and the two of them approached, following the golden haired elf. They approached Rátissë, who was cleaning the sweat out of her skin. Accarmo opened his mouth, but the youngest sinda beat him. “Aiya, Lady Feanorian. Mind having a short spar with us?”

“Of course not, my prince” the girl extended her arms in invitation. “If three against one seems fair enough to you, I gladly accept.”

“You are being too prideful, my lady” Elúred said with ice on his tone. “You are facing three princes now, with more than their fair share of experience. It won´t be as easy as beating a bunch of lowborn, beginner level guards.”

“And you, prince Elúred, are forgetting that I am Feanorian”

The sinda twins were the first to attack and, sure, they were experienced, but the girl had trained since she was old enough to walk, first with Haleth and then with Caranthir. And she never slacked like the others. Their coordinated effort was a problem, yes, but she managed to land first Elúred and then Elúrin on the ground, weaponless, before quickly finishing with Accarmo, ending right over him with the tip of the sword pressed on his neck.

“When are you going to end with this?” she asked, already tired of his tried to conquer her. “I don´t know what I did to catch your attention, but it stops now. I don´t feel anything for you and never will.”

“You… you knew?” he questioned, surprised. And more than a bit ashamed. 

“Of course, it was pretty obvious”

“But… but if you give me a chance…”

“Oh, dear” she drawed her actual dagger and pressed it to his neck, making the boy actually fear for his live. “A similar history doesn´t mean anything, cousin. There is also no chance that I return your affections. You see… I don´t feel the impulse to procreate like some people do. Not even with closeness. And know that the stupidity with butterflies that is called love by children is not for me.”

“Stupidity with…” she actually drawed blood when he dared to talk. 

“Give it up, prince, or the next time I will actually finish with your infautuation in a definitive way” she put the dagger back into it´s sheat. “Guess I will collect your swords as a reward for…”

“My lady, a messenger from Formenos has showed up demanding to talk to you” a soldier wearing her family sigil informed her, suddenly arriving in the training yard. “He bears news of your family.”

“Oh, yes” the nís answered, grabbing her training towel. “I was planning on returning home in a few days anyway, I would love to have some news of the family.”

The lady strode away from her victims, who were still nursing their egos and wounds. She walked into the palace, only to be called to the Throne Room. Apparently, before she could reach him and take him to her home, the messenger was intercepted by King Arafinwë, who wanted to listen to their conversation. Rátissë went their way, there was nothing to hide in Formenos that they could use. Well, a thing or two, but her grandfather would never send a fool that would give their secrets away. She entered the Throne Room confident as that, finding she was right. Practically covered in a dark night coloured cloak, was…

“Muino, brother!” she saluted the arrival, embracing him in front of the King, Queen and Queen Mother. The girl was surprised that Finwë was not invited, but they knew that his wife doesn´t want him to give more support to the Feanorian cause. “Valar, I´m glad to see you!!”

“Not as glad as I am, sister” he nodded, then turned to his hosts. “Mine heru…”

“Oh, where are my manners? Muino, this is our grand uncle and king, Arafinwë of the noldor. His beautiful wife, Queen Earwën, and his mother, the vanya Indis” this one frowned at her lack of royal title for her, but didn´t comment. “My king and queen, honourable members of the council, this is my brother Muinafinwë Haldar Caranthirion.”

“Welcome. The stars shine upon our meeting, nephew” answered the golden haired king. “Then, what is the message my dear brother has for our Rátissë? He doesn´t fear we are treating his granddaughter badly, no?”

“Of course not, herunya, my grandfather knows you have been good to my sister” the boy bowed. “I only came here to give her an announcement: the Ambarussa are getting married” his sister stared at him in surprise. Has it really been long enough for her uncles to get engaged without her knowing? More than ten years… too long. “You are, of course, invited to the celebration, sister. If your duties allow you.”

“Of course, dear Rátissë can go back for such a joyous celebration” Earwën said before her husband could even answer. “And she will bear gifts from us to the happy couple. Which of the Ambarussar is getting married?”

“Both” Muino said sincerely. “Shortly after my sister went away, they met a cute pair of female twins, as united as them, and started courting them. Now, after a decade, they are ready to consagrate their union. They wanted to marry earlier, but… the family should be complete for such a joyous occation.”

“I agree wholeheardly” Finarfin answere. “Grandniece, you have my permission to return home for a few days, to celebrate”

“Thank you, herunya” Both Feanorians bowed, leaving for the mansion in Tirion. Once there, they relaxed. Ratissë served both a cup of wine, throwing her training weapon towards one of her maids. “So… what are the real news? Because you are not dumb enough to say them before the court, no?”

“The message is the same, only that there is also going to be a very especial coming of age ceremony” he lifted his head from his cup of wine. “Our cousin is finally an adult, sister. The little mole that used to run around behind us during childhood.”

“I thought he was never going to grow up” the girl said, careful not to mention the name in Tirion. Her family tried to keep the children in the dark at least until they had age to understand Children of Mandos and their diffrences, but… it was hard to hear horrible histories of the Traitor Maeglin here. “I have to say, I don´t imagine him as they painted him. that child was always too much of a sweetheart to betray anyone. Or to lust after a cousin to the point of obsession.”

“You are slightly mistaken on that, Issë” Muino announced. “I know from a good source that he is taken with Tyelpe. And now the Unattainable is becoming more… attainable for our little mole.”

“Can´t believe it” she smiled. “Well, I will have to see it in person, no?”

“Of course, dear sister”

In a few days, they both sailed to Formenos in the same ship Muino took to reach the capital. Arafinwë and his family were there to see them off, apart from giving their wedding gift for the Amabarussar to the Ambassador. The two Feanorians departed, reaching their island domain in a few days. It was marvellous for Rátissë, stopping being surrounded by vipers and being able to relax for the first time in weeks. Of course, the welcome home feast was one of the best she had ever tasted. And then…

“We have reunited here to celebrate the return of my dear granddaughter´s return from the capital, where she has been our voice. Thanks to her, there has been an increase in traiding, rights and freedom for our people” Fëanor patted her back with a big smile and raised her cup.   
“All hail Rátissë!!”

“Princess Rátissë!!” all the reunited people screamed.

“Yes, yes” the prince calmed them down. “But that´s not the only thing that has us reunited. My dear son Nelyafinwë´s child has reached his mayority, his coming of age approaching. Also, my youngest sons have decided to get married. Let´s drink to their and their brides happiness and many children. Cheer for that!!”

“Cheer for that!!”

“Tomorrow, prince Maeglin´s coming of age ceremony will be held. I hope to count with all of your presences tomorrow night, when Tilion is at it´s highest” Fëanor signalled the table which held Elrond´s household, recently arrived from Tol Eresseä. “Our honourable guests, eat and drink at your pleasure. You are welcome here.”

“Thanks, grandfather” the peredhel answered, raising his cup in answer. By his side, Laurefindil was fighting with his and Erestor´s new baby, who seemed to be unable to keep his mouth shut. Sarmener seemed to dislike silences, because he had the habit of screaming when people stopped talking.

“Come on, please, collaborate” the captain of the guard tried to stuck his finger in the baby´s mouth to make him chew it and forget about the banshee screams, but he kept spitting it, his crying getting louder and louder until Erestor finally got the baby out of his husband´s arms and into his own to soothe him. “I was about to do it”

“No, you weren´t” the advisor continued to bounce his son, but there was no use. Elrond and Celebrian smiled at their predicament. “What´s so funny, my lord, my lady?”

“Nothing, just… it reminds me of the times when the twins were babies” the silver haired nís said, giggling. “They never likes silence either, those two. They even screamed in formal celebrations!! So much that they had to be removed by their nurses!” she giggled again while her children turned red. “It was like it was yesterday” 

“And talking about things that were like yesterday” Elrond joined the conversation, looking at his little brother, who was talking to Tyelpe. “I never thought this day was going to come. He was so tiny when he was given to them… can´t believe he is finally grown!”

“He had been grown for quite some time, he is just legally an adult now” his wife reminded him. “Do you think he has gotten a girl yet? Or a boy? If not, I have a good few prospects from our own court he could be interested in.”

“I think your suggestion comes too late.”

“What do you mean, hus… ah, I see” the couple discretly saw how, a bit uncomfortably,   
Telperinquar and Maeglin exchanged pleasantries. There was also a gift involved, which made the younger smith blush like mad. “He is a little bit uncomfortable. Thought he had already gotten over that. Or that he never got that from his former life.”

“Nurture could only do so much, my lady” the healer took a sip from his drink. “But it has made wonders on his personality, at least from what the books say.”

“Oh, believe it” Glorfindel said, tiredly taking his eyes away from Sarmener. “His former self was a cunning, self-serving, snivelling and antisocial little mole, while this one is… still the mole, but much better. Less antisocial, more… friendly… I have to say, nurture really have a big role in someone´s personality development.”

“Um hum” the healer answered, looking at the raven, who had returned to his table.

“Let´s talk about something else, shall we?” Celebrian proposed. “How about this little one´s approaching presentation party? He should have one.”

-The day after-

Fingon awoke Maeglin earlier that day, informing him that the bath was ready. Scratching his eyes, he wondered why he had to get up with the sun until he remembered. It was his coming of age ceremony today. With the help of his parents, he got up, bathed and dressed in fine clothes, still those an adolescent would use, letting his atto fix his hair with ribbons much similar to his.

“It´s been such a long time and at the same time not enough” the Nolofinwean said, passing his hands through the dark strands of hair, much like his sister´s. “Can´t believe you are an adult now, when I had you in my arms just a century ago” he sobbed a bit. “My little boy, why have you grown so fast?”

“You are not going to start crying like uncle Moryo on cousin Rátissë´s coming of age celebrations, no?” the mole asked. “Because that would be uncomfortable.”

“I´m sorry, it´s just… I was never there for Ereinion and now with you… experiencing this for the first time… it´s so emotive!” he hugged the smith, making him groan in shame. “Can´t believe you are all grown up and an adult to both!!”

“Atto, please, you are going to ruin my clothes!!”

“Ups, seems like I barged in something private” Maedhros said as he entered the room in which Maeglin was preparing. It was still his childhood bedchamber, but it had changed since the first time they conditioned it for the baby they received. So much… “I have a special gift for you. Here, watch it.”

“Thank you” Maeglin received the box and opened it. His eyes widened when he saw what was inside. It was a small hairclip with a rubi. “I thought your last child jewel should be something you yourself forged. Remember when you gave ti to me for my begetting day?”

“Yes. You said that it looked a lot like a child jewel and I grew mad… you were right, by the way” he passed it to Findékano, so he could secure his braids with it. And, like that, he was ready. Ready to become a legal adult.

He walked confidently out of the house, his parents behind him with the clothes and jewels an adult noldor elf would wear. They were for him to change once the ceremony was over. The three of them and other people went to the central house, where Fëanor was already waiting along with the other members of the family, all of them dressed for the occassion. He walked until he was at the center of them and, together, the adult members and the celebrated one sang the ceremonial chants. Then the leader of the family drawed his sword and put it on his hands presenting the blade to Maeglin. This one kissed the bared steel and swore his loyalty to his liege, his king and the Valar. Everybody clapped when he ended, celebrating that a child became an adult.

“Congratulations, my grandson, you are a full fledged adult now” the Lord of Formenos congratulated him, putting a hand on his shoulders before pushing him towards his parents, who also congratulated him. The clothes and jewels were put on his hands as he was sent off to change. The festivities started as soon as he disappeared from view, a celebration that will go off for days, so he changed quickly and went down.

“Hello” Tyelpe appeared out of nowhere when he was getting down the stairs to reunite with everyone. “I was thinking that you might want something new to accompany those new garments and… made this for you” he took that chance to slip a bracelet with the eight pointed star on his wrist. “Made a jewel with this same symbol for each of my uncles and father when I came of age. Imagined that you might want one too.”

“Didn´t know you gave gifts in your coming of age ceremony.” Maeglin said, lowering his gaze in a way he hoped was enticing.

“It´s not a tradition, but you can do if you want” Telperinquar took his hand. “Looks amazing on you.”

“You know, my fathers got engaged with bracelets instead of rings”

“Really? I had no idea” the other smith said. “Maybe I can emulate their example, I have a lot of ideas for nuptial jewels that we should try.” He coughed up a bit, gathering his strength. “Now that you are no longer our little mole, would you… go on a ride with me? To the woods? And a picnic after?”

“Yes… I… I think so” leaving aside his awful relationship with the woods, he enjoyed ridding. To be with Tyelpe, he would be able to endure much more than a ride through those horrible places. 

“Shall we?”

“Of course” Maeglin took Tyelpe´s arm and they both went down to the main hall, where they would drink and dance with their family. Everybody clapped when they entered, but not as much as when Daeron and Maglor performed for the audience along with their two children. Fingon and Maedhros laughed and cried at the same time, hugging their son happily. This one reciprocated, happy to be with family. So sincere a smile…

As the unwanted, unnoticed guest that sat invisible in a corner of their dinning room. Námo had decided to see the result of his experiment first hand. Thanks to his deal, Maeglin had become a complete different person than the one he had been in his first life. The conniving, lusty prince had become a good boy and even made his parents better… so much that he wondered if they would have been such a disaster if they have had him in their own first life. Well, they would probably have never left Valinor in the first place if they did. And been happier for that, which was great.

But somehow, somehow, he felt that his work with Maeglin was not done yet. That there were some loose threads in the little mole´s life that he should solve. And how could it not, when those two had not received their due. Mainly spoiled Princess Irissë, as the father was already feeling some guilt over leaving his son alone. Deciding, the Doomsman disappeared from the feast back into his Hallds, where he called his brother.

“Irmo, thank you for answering my call” he greeted the other Vala as he appeared. “I wanted to ask you for help in one last thing. And for that, you see, I need to infiltrate someone´s dreams”

“Does it has to do with Princess Irissë?” the lord of dreams asked, surprising his brother. “Yes, I felt her as a loose thread since I helped her son begin again. What should I do?”

“Just… show her what could have been”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!!! Maeglin is finally a century old, an adult and... someone is about to appear in his life after so much time absent. Yes, indeed, it´s time for wild Aredhel to get her due! How do you think that reunion will go? Review!!


	28. Chapter 28

“IT´S OVER!! THIS IS OVER!!” Námo entered a meeting of the Valar with an enraged expression and making so much noice that many thought that instead of the calm, silent Doomsman, it was the loud, boisterous Tulkas the one that entered. 

“What…” Manwë started, wanting to demand explanations. 

“I DEMAND HELP!! THIS HAS BEEN DRAGGED ENOUGH!! I DEMAND THE HELP OF THE VALAR TO REDUCE THE POPULATIONS OF TABULA RASA SOULS IN MY HALLS!! THEY ARE MAKING ME MAD!! OTHERWISE, I´M GOING TO RELEASE THE DEAD ON YOU AND YOUR ARE NOT GOING TO LIKE IT!!”

“Dear Námo, I don´t know what you want us to do…”

“I want each of your followers to adopt a child. With that the amount of souls in my halls should reduce to a manageable amount…”

“Brother, be reasonable” Oromë tried to calm the other down. “Most of Yavanna´s, Vána´s and mine´s followers are single and, in my case, too wild to properly care for a child. And Varië´s are isolated from the world, besides being mostly maiar…”

“How about this?” Manwë approached him in a conciliatory way. “We are all going to talk about this in the council and find a solution to your internal crisis. The proyect you have been running has had excellent results in the population that accepted this unusual reborn, it would be a shame to ruin it because of a rushed decision, no?”

“I suppouse” the agitated Vala finally calmed down. “You better have some good proposals to give to me, because if not I´m really going to make your elf followers adopt them all. And I´m not joking” he exited the place, planning to go to his Halls. But then he remembered something and waited. “Irmo, brother, wait.”

“I know what you are going to ask me, brother” the Lord of Lorien said, sighing. “Everything is fine on Princess Irissë´s side. She is dreaming of the child, that precious gift from Eru to her she abandoned so easily, every night. Suffering too. Any day from now she is going to search for him.”

“You said that at the beginning, ten years ago” Námo reminded him. “I´m starting to think she is made of stone.”

“A very wild little thing, resistant too” Irmo conceded. “Wonder why she never made it to Oromë´s bed. Thought he liked wild types. She is a thought bone too” He sighed. “But I finally got her, in no time she is going to be beging to be reunited with him.”

“A century after he needed her the most. His new parents are not going to be thrilled by her apparition.”

“If she makes an apparition” Lorien commented. “Princess Anairë has had a lot of time to rethink her deal with her firstborn.”

“It would be a pity that she ruins our plan for her daughter”

“Don´t worry, brother. That´s taken care of”

“And Prince Arákano?”

“He will do what his mother does”

“Indeed”

-In Fingolfin´s house-

“Woow, sister, you look horrible” Turgon said when Aredhel stroded slowly to the breakfast table. Very sporadically he went to his parent´s home now that three of his lords have deserted him, but he still tried to make some time for the family. For Elenwë, Idril and his parents. And, perhaps, his siblings. All except Finno, of course. “Did you forget that I was going to visit today? Or is your new look?”

“Jaja, very funny” the barely awake Aredhel yawned, sitting down sloppily next to her sister in law. “Try to look diferent when you have barely slept in more than a year” she yawned again. “You would look a lot worse than I for sure.”

“Not so much myself” her brother answered, giving her an evil look. Still in her piyamas, the princess looked everything but that. Her hair was a mess, her clothes dirty and the rings around her eyes resembled a raccoon more than an elf. “That party yesterday must have been wild. How much did you drink to end up like that?”

“Not a drop” she glared at him. “And I went to bed early yesterday. Here.”

“I don´t believe you”

“Believe her, Turno, our sister has turned into a respectable lady lately.” Arko got in. “Always at home, sewing with ammë, sleeping early and not getting out… never thought she would achieve that.”

“Seriously?” the older one got interested. “So, sister, what do you plan to achieve with this new fond respectability? Are you finally going to go through my list of suitors that would make a good marriage?”

“Nah, it´s other thing” Irissë passed a hand through her wild locks. “I´m going to sound crazy, but I want to find Lómion” everyone around her choked and started coughing, for very different reasons. “What? It´s that strange that I want to reconnect with my son?”

“You said… he was not your son… before you threw him away. Don´t you remember that?”

“So what? I´m still his mother” Anairë looked at her daughter in disbelieve. Could she really consider herself a mother after what she did? “Look, I´m not asking you to accompany me, just to bare with him when I bring him back.”

“Bing him back? Do you even know where to began searching?” Argon asked. 

“With Eöl” Aredhel answered without really thinking. Or maybe ignorant of her child´s short second life and subsequent rebirth. “Who else would give him sanctuary with such a reputation? Now, if only I know where his tribe is living…”

Her family tried to dissuade her, but there was no use. In the end, Turgon ended up having to accompany his sister and mother to the place where her ex husband and his new family lived. Anairë stared at her daughter all the way to their destination. How to dissuade her without gaining more of her interest? She didn´t want her children to fight, no more. Besides… she loved her girl and didn´t want her to suffer, not even because of her own mistakes. And Maeglin… Aredhel lost her right to the boy a long time ago. Finno was his true parent along with Maitimo, not her or her ex.

“Irissë, have you really thought your...”

“Shhh, ammë, we are here” the princess said as they stopped their horses on the entrances of a house that looked pretty much like the one she had lived in with Eöl in the past, but more… sunny. And there was a garden too. And a sling. “Woow, I could never believe it of him, but he actually has a heart.”

“One you broke, my daughter”

“Amil…”

“Ehhhh, aiya?” an avari woman saluted them. She obviously has been tending to the garden before being interrupted by the visitors. “My lord and ladies, be welcome to my home. My husband is currently in his forge, I´m afraid, but he will attend to you…”

“Never, I already know” she got down and rudely showed the lovely woman out of her way. Anairë followed to scold her, but she was already searching the house. “Eöl!! Lómion!! Are you somewhere here, my son?! Eöl, if you did something to my baby…”

“Why would you care, Aredhel?” the smith said, getting out of his forge still in his working clothes. “You never did until today.”

“Where are you keeping him, Eöl? If you laid a finger on him…”

“I didn´t, haven´t seen him since he came begging for a home like a century ago” he stared at his hand. The one with the new ring. Then to his wife, who was looking at him and the woman in front of him with a little bit of fear. And she was right, considering that her husband´s ex was a stunning beauty and she barely pretty. “Why? Didn´t you take care of him? I mean, you stole him form me for a reason, no? To take care of him.”

“Of course not!! That´s why I´m asking you!!”

“Oh, then… I guess he was telling the truth when he said that he had nowhere else to go. Too bad that I threw him out too, don´t want to have anything that reminds me of our failed marriage” he sighed. “Guess his blood or whatever that happened to him will be forever in my conscience if I find out what happened to him.” he turned around. “He is now here, now leave, Aredhel. I have work to do.”

“Eöl, you really…”

“We were the worse match possible, Aredhel, it was never going to work. And I don´t need a reminder of such a relationship or of the pain you caused me. Not even my son.” he walked away. “Now, please leave, I have things to do.”

“Ugh, whatever, but don´t think for a second that I will stop searching for him!!”

“Be my guest, don´t bother telling me what you found!!”

Anairë sighed in relief. Maybe now that the trail went cold, her daughter would eventually give up. Turgon was hoping the same, as he was partially responsible for what happened to his nephew. Unfortunately, they underestimated Irissë´s determination (and her wish to sleep). She somehow learned that Lómion has taken his own life (just that, not the backstory) and went directly to Námo to demand his release. The Vala seemed too amused by her visit to his Realm and cheerfully informed her that her dear son was released almost immediately after arriving to his realm.

“But how!! How isn´t he here?!!” she started screaming as soon as she returned home, much to her mother´s and brother´s displeasure. “Who else could he turn to but his mother? Why didn´t he come to me to sanctuary?”

“Why indeed?” Turgon said. He had been very lucky that his sister didn´t know he had something to do with Maeglin´s suicide, but to hear that he has been out and about for a century… that irked him. Why had he not noticed? His little girl could be in danger with that maniac out there.

“But how? And where in Mandos is he? I need to find him, my baby…”

“Do you really want to know?” Anairë interrupted her rambling. This past few days witnessing her daughter´s determination to find her son made her rethink her deal with Finno once more and… no matter how much she wanted to protect her, Aredhel needed to know there were consequences. And that her indifference had done her a great disservice. “Do you really want to meet him?” 

“Ammë…”

“Answer my question with the truth, daughter, is this not a fleeting fancy of yours? Do you really want to see the child you abandoned to destiny as his mother?”

“Of course I want” Aredhel answered, remembering those ten years of horrible dreams she had endured. “I want it more than anything.” 

“Formenos” the older nís finally revealed. “You will find him in Formenos. He has been living with Finno the last century. I have seen them all from time to time, when I visit him and his husband in the island.”

“Formenos?” Turgon asked, not liking one bit that his mother was going there to see his wretch of a brother, but, at the same time, he kind of understood. He wouldn´t be able to abandon Itarillë, even if she did something horrible or had those pervertions, he was her father after all. For a mother had to be worse. Now, about Maeglin, it made a lot of sense for him to hide between people like him. Kinslayers must be the only kind of elves that would accept him between them. Besides, great smiths lived there, which meant opportunities for young apprentices. He was always drawn to the forge, after all. “What is he doing there?”

“Works in Fëanor´s smithy alongside Telperinquar and Curufin, last I knew” and of course his wretched half-cousins would accept that wretch. “The little dear enjoyed it a lot.”

“He always liked the forge” Aredhel commented, remembering Nan Elmoth. “What he didn´t enjoy was Eöl´s presence in it.” She got up. “Thank you, ammë, I´m going to catch the ferry now.”

“Ferry, sister? Where to?”

“To Formenos, of course!! I will find my son today!!” Anairë sighed and got. She won´t enjoy intruding in her firstborn privacy, but for little Maeglin… the boy didn´t remember Aredhel. He will be so confussed if a strange woman walked up to him on the street and introduces herself as his mother. She need to be there to do some damage control.

“I will accompany you too, mother, sister” the woman turned to her son, who was already putting on his travelling cloak.

“Why, my son? You hate Formenos.”

“It´s a good opportunity to reconnect with my brother and nephew. Wasn´t that what you wanted, dear mother?”  
Anairë felt something dreaful in her tummy, but she didn´t stop him. Hidding Maeglin forever wasn´t going to work, not with the young adult getting restless and wanting to discover the world. Maybe exposing him to Turgon was too much, but… Maitimo and Finno should have explained him much earlier why he couldn´t leave in the city. Perhaps this surprise visit from Turno would finally make them, before something dreadful happens to their little one.

-In Formenos-

“This place is filled with kinslayers, how are we going to find Maeglin here?” Turgon asked when the three visitors arrived to the island. Aredhel didn´t let her mother answer, she simply grabbed a random bystander and asked about the forges of Fëanor. The nér signalled the center of the city, where the biggest mansions were, making the princess rush towards the place.

“Irissë, dearie, please, think about this better” Anairë tried to stop her without success, so she decided to go directly to the point. “There is something I need to tell you before you…”

BAMF!! The White Lady crashed with someone carrying a few packages. She lifted herself, ready to give the person a tongue lashing when this one got to his feet and turned. It was Maeglin.

“Sorry, did I hurt you?” Lómion said, extending a hand. “I should have been more careful with… Haruni Anairë!! Haven´t seen you in months!!” the boy cheerfully saluted his grandmother, which confused the woman´s children a lot. Why was he greeting a nís he hadn´t seen in his first and second lives and acting as if Turgon and Aredhel, who contributed to his raising, as perfect strangers? “Are you here for the party?”

“Well… not really, but I might stay for it” she answered, tense. “You should really try to be more attentive, child, you dirtied your poor aunt´s dress.”

Aunt?

“Aunt?” he questioned, oblivious. “Didn´t uncle Arno marry Lady Alallë?”

“Yes, this are Finno´s siblings. Your uncle Turúkano and aunt Irissë” Anairë grabbed her children´s wrists with strength to keep them quiet while she introduced them to him. “You two, greet Maeglin, FINNO´s son.”  
Finno´s? Since when was he Finno´s? He was AREDHEL´S!!

“Great to finally meet you, uncle, aunt” he respectfully bowed, despite the strange look they have him. and something more in the lady´s case. “Do I know you?”

“No, I don´t think so” his grandmother interjected quickly. “Now, child, isn´t your grandfather expecting those packages?” Maeglin paled when that was mentioned. He quickly gathered them, praying that it wasn´t too late. “Off you go, boy. Don´t be late”

“Right” he smiled one last time before setting off. “It was a pleasure, haruni, uncle, aunt.”

“Aunt?” asked Turgon for a very shocked Aredhel when the boy was finally out of view. 

“That´s what I wanted to talk about before coming here” she told them. “He is a Child of Mandos”

-Later-

Maeglin was running back home as fast as he could. He was able to get out of the forge early specially to sneak his parent´s anniversary presents in his room until the actual date (Tyelpe covered him, as his grandfather wouldn´t have allowed that), so he entered to the house through one of the servant´s entrance. He arrived to the stairs near the living room…

“YOU DIDN´T HAVE A RIGHT!!” the loud voice screaming nearly make him drop the presents. He froze at the sound of the female voice yelling, enraged. “HE IS MY CHILD!! MINE!! NOT YOURS!!”

“You left him, sister dear” Findékano´s voice was cold, but there was also a strange edge to it that… the boy didn´t like his atto sounding so much like that. He peeked in and saw the complete escene. A tense Maitimo standing near the sofa where Finno was sitting, obviously distressed, in front of Irissë and Turgon. “Maeglin went to you first when he needed help, protection, and you abandoned him to a worse destiny than death. Or are you going to deny it?”

“I… I can´t deny it, but…” Aredhel said, not able to lie beneath the glaring eyes of her mother. “But that doesn´t mean that you and your unnatural whore can take him!! He is mine, I made him!! He was born from me!!”

“We have raised him since he was reborn as a baby, Irissë, he doesn´t know you.”

“And we have done a damn better work than you and the bastard over there ever did” the redhead joined the tense conversation, earning a glare from Turgon.

“Nelyo…”

“You know I´m right”

“Can you… just let me handle this before you made an even bigger mess?” Fingon asked him, turning back to his family. “Irissë, you surprise me. You have never been discriminating in the past, less because of my sexuality.”

“Well, that was before you stole my child”

“We didn´t steal him, we told amil and offered to return him to you as soon as he was given to us, when you showed interest in him. Hell, we were even willing to reach an agreement to share him with you when he grew up and was attached to us” Maeglin covered his mouth. Was that true? His birth mother was… his atto´s sister? And they were going to share him with someone? How? They were his parents… but… Finno was also Irissë´s brother. “But, sister, your live was so chaotic and you never showed interest until now…”

“Oh, then that gives you the right to steal someone else´s child?”

“Irissë, calm down…”

“I´M NOT GOING TO CALM DOWN!! YOU STOLE MY SON!!”

“It doesn´t sound like that to me” tired of listening to them, Maeglin stepped out into the light, making everybody jump. They haven´t sensed him enter. “To me, it sounded that you got rid of former me because he got in the way of your plans and, for who knows what, you recently regretted that, so decided to come searching for me. But guess what? Actions have consequences and abandoning someone isn´t just forgiven” he learned that from his brother Elrond, who talked sometimes about his other family when Lómion briefly had wondered who were his birth parents. “You see them now”

“Lómion, let me explain…”

“Oh, there is nothing to explain. Not when even here I have heard rumors of your dissolute livestyle” he said angrily. “Well, DEAR AUNT, your wish became true. You NO LONGER have a son, only a nephew. And that´s all you are going to find in me.”

Aredhel was frozen, her eyes shocked and her expression in despair. 

“Maeglin, please…”

“Don´t talk to me!!” he stopped Finno when he tried to explain the situation. “I´m angry with you about the sharing thing, so don´t you even try!!”

He rushed upstairs, closing his bedroom door with a bang. Fingon let his head fall into his hands, stressed out. He knew it was a possibility, but… he never thought Aredhel was going to appear there. Not really with how much she enjoyed her livestyle. Seeing her son´t distress, Anairë quickly grabbed her other children and rushed out, ready to give them a stern talking to about that. She agreed with Maeglin, after all that happened her daughter could never be her grandson´s mother, only his aunt. Finno and Nelyo raised him, they were his parents.

For their part, Fingon and Maedhros were having a rough time too. Their day took a turn for the worst when the three appeared in their doorstep, but… what really made them declare this one the worst in their lives was that Maeglin listened. And he didn´t like what he listened. He was angry now, their baby didn´t want to talk to them and that hurt, but there was not other way to fix except…

“Maeglin, can you please come downstairs to talk?” the redhead asked. It was really late, already dark outside. They maybe should have let him sleep, but they needed to do that today. “I know you are angry, but…”

“I´m going” the younger eld tiredly answered, not so angry anymore. He went to the living room and… “Were you really going to get rid of me? Or share me?”

“No!! What gave you that idea?!” Findékano got up from his couch with an incredulous look. “Maybe I explained it wrong, but… I felt bad at the beginning because I knew you were my sister´s child. I thougth she might have wanted you back, which she never did, but… we wanted you to know your true roots if there was a chance” he sighed, tired. “I was thinking about some shared custody deal, but she never showed interest until now. And I was glad for that” he guiltily shared. “You brough so much happiness to us, my son…”

“What your atto is trying to tell you” Maedhros intervened before the youngling could ask. “Is that, despite everything you heard, you are and will ever be our precious child.” He hugged the boy. “My son, you were one of the best things that happened to me. To us both. We could have never let you go.”

“I love you too” Maeglin finally said, returning the hug. He was more reassured by those words. “Is… is there anything else I need to know about myself? I know I said that I didn´t care about my birth family, but… I guess I should find out before another piece of my past comes to us like that.”

“Well…” should they tell him about Gondolin and Turgon? “You have an avari father named Eöl. He was a smith, the same as former you… do you want to meet him?”

“Some other time, I don´t feel ready. Not after my encounter with the Night Lady of Tirion”

“Maeglin…”

“What? Everybody calls her that!! And you know why!!” all of them laughed.

-The day after-

“Maeglin?”

“Uncle, I thought you have gone back to Tirion” the boy said when he bumped into Turgon in the streets. “Are grandmother and aunt Irissë here too?”

“No, ammë dragged her back to Tirion when she refused to listen to reason” he said, remembering the fight that broke the other night. “I, on the other side, wanted to talk to you” he put a hand on his shoulders. “Did your parents, by the way, told you that you used to live in Gondolin with me before becoming a Child of Mandos?”

“No, they never mentioned it” it was strange. Why did Finno and Nelyo hid it? Maybe they just forgot, he rationalized. “That explains some things. I have always wanted to visit Gondolin.”

“And why haven´t you? My city is a very nice place, you will love it” the taller one continued. “There is also a lot of people that used to know you, who misses you… Rog, for example. You used to work together a lot, as the best smiths in the city… what do you say, nephew? Do you want to see Rog again?”

“I don´t…”

“Well, I guess that as you don´t remember…”

“No!! Uncle, it´s not that!!” the younger elf said. “It´s just that… I promised my parents never to leave Formenos without them or a member of the family. And they won´t let me go.”

“I figured Finno and Nelyo can be overprotective of their little mole, but aren´t you an adult?” he nodded wearily. “Then you can take the decision by yourself. Come on, return to Gondolin a day or two. You are going to enjoy it a lot…”

A few minutes later, Turúkano left the encounter place, satisfied to have extracted a promise from Lómion to go visit him in Gondolin soon. And what a visit that was going to be! The citizens have been baying for the Traitor´s blood for a long time now. Also, as it might hurt his pervert brother and his kinslaying whore the most… oh, he needed to plan this well. It must be something no one could forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A heartfeeling chapter, no? And there is a thread looming too. What will Turgon do to the little mole? Will Maeglin fall into his trap? Or will SOMEONE manage to save him? Review!!


	29. Chapter 29

“He is not here?” Findékano said that afternoon, when he went to pick up Maeglin. He hadn´t done so since he was little, but… something told him that he must do it. Specially because he was really late. “I don´t understand he must be here.”

“Well, no. He hasn´t come in all day” Fëanor answered, frowning too. He didn´t make it a habit to keep track of all the young smiths, nor of all his descendants, but… Lómion was a special case. And this was really suspicious. “Not usual in him at all. Are you sure he came to the forge?”

“Yes, he went out yesterday in the morning with his tools, like all days… He said he was going to spend the night with you in the forge” the younger elf was starting to get scared. So much that Fëanáro put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. “I should have made sure he came directly here… I don´t know, follow him like when he was younger…”

“Hey, hey, calm down” the other patted him uncomfortably, not used to being the one that had to deal with outbursts, but he needed Findékano calm if they were going to search for Maeglin. “Now, return home and search around his room. I know you normally would respect your adult son´s privacy, but he might have left a clue about where did he go in there” his nephew nodded, ready to work. “I will also send a search party to scan the island for him, okay? We are going to find him.”

“Yes… yes…” he ran back home and started putting his boy´s room upside down. He found a lot of things, many that were believed lost forever, including a complete family of plushy moles his baby should have outgrown by now. With his heart in his throat, he continued with the search until something barely hidden in his bedside table caught his attention. It was a sheet of letter. He opened it, feeling more and more panic as he readed.

“Finno? Atar told me there was trouble, what…” a frozen Fingon barely managed to move to hand the paper to his husband. The redhead grabbed it and started reading. His horror only grew as he took in the words.

Dear atya and atto,  
I know you told me not to do it, but I really wanted to and decided to take the opportunity to see the outside world. My first stop will be Gondolin!! Uncle Turúkane invited me when he visited with Haruni Anairë a few months ago. He even offered to introduce me to the smiths of the House of the Hammer! I know they are probably not as good as grandfather, uncle and Tyelpe, but I still want to see their forges. Uncle Turno said they are magnificent.  
Anyway, I think I will be away from home for a long time… perhaps a year. Please don´t hate me. I know it might hurt, but… I need to grow up. And taking my own decisions is the first thing. See you when I return.  
All my love,  
Maeglin

“No” Maedhros said, knowing full well that if his baby boy put a foot in that wretched city, he would only return to them through Mandos. If he even got to get out a second time. Then a burning anger sparked in him. “Turgon, that bastard.”

“Our baby… Nelyo, our baby…” Finno continued to cry. “They are going to kill him, no matter that he is not the same person anymore. You know what Námo told us about his second death, you heard what they did to him… and now there are going to be more than three avengers.” He started to hyperventilate. “Nelyo, our boy is walking into the wolf´s den without knowing and… and… what are we going to do? What are we going to…”

“Finno” Maitimo grabbed his hand, pressing it lightly. The other lifted his eyes to his husband. “Calm own, okay? I know it´s hard, but right now we need to keep our cools. We can´t help Maeglin if we are panicking, okay?” Fingon breathed in and out a few times, trying to regain control. In times like this, he envied Nelyo and his hability to keep control in situations like this. “Go to the Palantir. Tyelpe is in Tirion right now, closer to Gondolin than we are, and with Rátissë. They have the resources there to mount a rescue party. Call him and tell him to hurry there.”

“Yes… yes…”

“I will go for a few things and then directly to the ferry” he embraced his husband before letting him go. “We are going for our boy.”

Finndékano nodded and ran for their palantir, so they can call Tyelpe, while Maedhros ran to a room in the mansion they normally kept close. He opened it and… was assaulted by memories of the past. Beginning with the armours right in front of him. They were replicas, of course, made by Fëanor for their personal warroom, even if they were not going to see it after closing it. But they needed them as much as they needed the room. Because there were some things that, even if they were painful, they shouldn´t forget. The horrors of war…

CRASH!! CRASH!!

The sound interrupted the peacefulness of the normally quiet room as the glass boxes the armours were encased in were smashed and a gloomy looking Maedhros picked up the chestpiece of his own. He had only entered this room once since he and his husband lived in that house. It was when Maeglin was given to them, to pick up the replicas of their swords (Nelyo´s original one was now in possession of Aragorn´s descendant, renamed first Narsil and then Andúril, and Fingon´s was lost in the Nirnaeth) so the new parents could protect their baby. And now, the armours were also going to get out for him. 

“Maitimo?” asked Finno from the door, a little bit scared at his expression. “What are you doing?”

“Preparing” he grunted, walking to him. “Turgon is not going to abandon his vengeance like that, to make him… we are probably going to have to revert to something we never wanted to do again. Will you still be with me then?”

“Now and ever” Findékano answered grabbing it and helping him get into the metal thing. “Let´s go for our son.”

-In Gondolin-

“I´m glad you made it here, nephew” Turgon said as he welcomed Maeglin to his city. The smile on his face didn´t reflect the wickedness he felt on his chest. Everything was falling into place now. His brother and his unnatural lover will be punished, his subjects will have their vengeance on the one that rained destruction over them and his daughter… his precious Idril won´t have to spend nights awake wondering when he was going to strike again.

“I´m so glad to be here” the unsuspecting elf answered, embracing him as a family member. That made Turgon shudder and he had to hide his disgust. “Thank you for inviting me, your city is just as you described. Great. I doubt even the great Tirion hold a torch to it´s beauty.”

“Maybe it´s because you haven´t seen Tirion yet” the prince said, feeling smug despite the precedence of the compliment. “Come, I will introduce you to the family and our lords” he guided the younger elf towards a house… a small one that would belong more to a peasant that nobility. “They are happy to see you again.”

“But… uncle… shouldn´t we go to the palace?”

“Oh, no, they are… still making arrangements for your stay. You should see, the servants are everywhere” Turgon lied, exaggerating a bit. “So we are going to have a private reunion somewhere else before moving there. But quickly, everybody is expecting you…”

“Why a…” he was suddenly showed inside a small space, dark and damp. It was obvious that the house hadn´t been used for a long time. But it was surely habitet. By a lot of people. Elves of all kind that were glaring at him as if he personally had done something particularly awful to all of them. “What…”

“My people!! Elves of Gondolin!!” his uncle started, moving towards a golden haired nís with the most hateful glare the raven had ever seen. “I have brought you Maeglin the Traitor!! The destroyer of our fables city!!” there was a roar following his name, which made the victim wince. He didn´t understand… “Let us exact our vengeance!!”

There was a roar of approval as the boy was dragged quite rudely towards a column, where he was chained with his hands up. It felt so painful. At least until the first blade pierced his skin. He screamed, asking why they were doing this for him. What did he do to earn all those people´s ire? He… his former he must have done something really terrible to make people so angry with him. And to his uncle. And to his cousin and her family and…

By the side, Rog of the Hammer was asking if this was really a good idea. Maeglin wasn´t reacting as if he was the same as before. Iron Hells, he wasn´t even reacting as if he knew about the Fall of Gondolin!! Smelling foul play, he pushed people aside and walked to his king. A king who was enjoying this a little bit too much.

“Turúkano, what is happening here?” he asked, earning a strange look from his fellow lords, who were all around their liege and oblivious to the boy´s pain. “Don´t play with me, I have dealed with a lot of people who are guilty and that´s not the expression of a guilty one, not even of one that is trying to hide it.”

“Rog, calm…”

“No, you will tell me right now what is going on or I…”

“He is a Child of Mandos, happy now?” the smith sucked a breath in horror. Contrary to what most gondolindrim thought, he had no prejudice against Children of Mandos. Even more, he had interacted with them more than all of them. He was an Avari, after all. And a former slave!! He, more than anyone, could see the benefits of such a thing as an entirely fresh start. But right now… “Come on, it´s no big deal.”

“No big deal?! We are torturing an innocent, Turgon!!” he stated, his hands passing through his hair. “Valar, what have you done? He doesn´t remember a thing…”

“You agreed with this, Rog. Do you remember that?”

“It was before I knew he was reborn a child” then something else came to his mind. “And his parents? They must be desperate…”

“My brother and his husband, who deserves it more than ever” he laughed evily. “Maybe after we are done, if there is something left, I will give him to the sindar. They surely are going to be full of ideas of what to do with him to hurt the kinslayers.”

“This is sick” the lord took a few steps back, looking in abject horror at the others. Maeglin… the Maeglin they knew would never grace them with his nefastous presence again. The Valar took charge of that. This child, because that was what the elf was, was not guilty of whatever he had done in the past. Dammit, he was probably terrified right now. 

“You are going to miss your spot on the line, my lord” one of his men said, approaching them. 

“Come on, Rog, take your vengeance.” Turon dismissed him.

“Do it yourselves, I don´t want anything to do with this” the smith marched out of the room, enraged. Only a bit more and he would have done something he would repent for the rest of the eternity. And the people… Eru, the people were still torturing that poor kid just because of someone he didn´t know´s sin. He couldn´t take it, not this guilt.

The smith pulled out something no one in Gondolin was supposed to have, a palantir, and made a call.

“Hello, I´m a little bit busy right now, so…” Celebrimbor said as he picked up the call, apparently ridding a horse at the same time. 

“Believe me, this is something you should hear” he shook his head. Celebrimbor and he had met years before, when Silver Fist still resided in Tirion. Rog had taken an interest in the fabled smith´s work and Telperinquar enjoyed talking to him, so he gave him a palantir to speak when they want to. “Maeglin is here.”

“I know…”

“And I hope you come with armed men, because they are quite bloodthirsty…”

“Dammit, I know!!”

“And there is going to be an opening in a few seconds in the principal entrance, hope you are close enough to take advantage of that.” The Hammer hanged before walking casually to the main entrance. There he chatted with the guards and informed them of Maeglin´s presence in the city. It was enough to send them to the little house. And enough for Tyelpe to arrive in nearly death horse for the effort.

“Where is he?”

“Down there, first house on the left. Thanks to a basement, it´s bigger on the inside than the outside” the other smith answered. “You should keep my involvement secret…”

“I´m not outing you, only came for Turgon´s head.”

“Woow, feisty” he answered, smilling. “Could there be love?”

“Get out of my way” Telperinquar pushed him out of the way and went with his men to the mentioned house. He slammed the door open, suprising the gondolindrim in the middle of their vengeance with a hundredth armoured and ready feanorian soldiers. And Rátissë… he didn´t know what was worse.

“I see we have interrupted a party” the girl said, looking down at all the reunited people. They were barely armed with small knifes, only there for a party. A party of blood that no rightful elf should enjoy.

“Hum” Tyelpe advanced, glaring at anyone who dared to get in is way. his glare was so similar to the one of his grandfather that no one dared to do that. At least until he reached Maeglin and tried to pry the crying elf from the column. 

“Take your hands away, Ringmaker, you can´t deprive my people of their vengeance.”

“Vengeance? Can assaulting someone weak, someone who doesn´t know the crime, vengences? Luring someone to a trap with lies? Where is the vengeance in that?” he glared at the Nolofinwion. “This is a work of orcs, not a vengeance.”

“I warn you…”

“No, I warn YOU” Tyelpe said, showing his teeth. “If you continue with this, you will incur into an act of war. And believe me, you don´t want that. The Feanorians will crush you and you know it.”

“You don´t have the power to do that”

“She does” he pointed to Rátissë. “And agrees with me. Do you want to test my words?” he reassumed working on freeing the younger elf, who, once released, slumped motionlessly over him. “It was a pleasure to enjoy the HOSPITALITY of Gondolin.”

“Wait there!!”

“Go to Angband, Turúkano!!!”

\- Later- 

“My son!!” Findékano screamed as he and Nelyo were reunited with Maeglin on the way to Gondolin. Finarfin, who had accompanied them to make sure every diplomatic way was tried before a war broke out, sighed in relieve. Crisis averted. Fingolfin only frowned. “Oh, my boy, what have they done to you?”

“Are you okay?” the redhead asked, looking at the boy. 

“Hurts all over my body and I´m cut up, but… I think I will recover” he answered as his parents fussed over him. He felt calmer now, with them… and Tyelpe. His rescuer. “Thank you, Tyelpe. If you haven´t arrived then…”

“It was not even a fraction of what you deserved” Turgon said, glaring. “For all you did. A thousand deaths wouldn´t even…” before he finished that Fingon had already showed his son into his husband´s arms and attacked his brother. “Auch!!” he screamed as he felt to the ground. “What are you… Finno?”

“One more words, I dare you” Fingon said as he held a sword to his brother´s neck. Both Arafinwë and Nolofinwë´s eyes widened in terror. It was so similar to when Fëanor used his own weapon against the eldest… “One more and I will slith your throat.”

“Fin… Finno…”

“I didn´t doubt to kill to save someone I loved the first time, I can do it again” the older brother said as he threatened the younger. “And I don´t care you are my brother, touch my son or my husband and I will kill you. Do you understand?”

“You wouldn´t dare.”

“Do you want to test me?”

“No, nephew, he doesn´t want” Finarfin said with a stern voice, hoping to avert eh budging crisis that was about to break there. The High King glared down at Turgon, who was too afraid to move, even when Fingon´s sword moved from his neck. “And none of us desire a war. So drop the sword, nephew, and we will talk.”

“He won´t get close to my son again”

“I assure you that” the golden haired elf gave his promise. Findékano took his sword away from a glaring Turgon´s neck and went away. Arafinwë, for his part, sighed. “As this was a crime commited by Gondolin practically as a whole and too great for me to ask this to be settled as a family affair, I will give this punishment: from now on, Gondolin is banished for thirteen years from the Realms of the Noldor.”

“What?! How could you banish a whole city?! Where would we go?!” Turgon screamed, backed by his father. 

“You won´t need to leave, but you will no longer be part of our kingdom. And no help or trade will come to you, no aid of any kind or food or water… not for thirteen years” Finarfin glared at him. “You wanted vengeance and were willing to harm innocents for that. Now bear the consequences.”

“You can´t do this…”

“I already did” the High King stared down at his nephew. “Good luck surviving by yourseves, should be easier than when the Feanorians were banished before Formenos creation in the Age of the Trees.”

“You can´t do this!! You can´t do this!!!”

-In Formenos-

“Dear, is there something…”

“Am I a bad person?” Maeglin asked from his place on the bed. His parents have been fussing over him since they arrived home and he was confined to his room until he recovered from the injuries and broken bones the gondolindrim gave to him. For some reason, he couldn´t take those thoughts out of his head. What they said…   
“Those elves…”

“Forget it, my dear, they aren´t…”

“Finno”

“Nelyo, please, he doesn´t…”

“He needs to know” the older said, sitting down next to them with a book on his lap. “It was a mistake to hide this from him. It´s of the past, but he will always be in danger because of that. It would be better if he understands.”

“Understand what? I am what those elves told me I am? A traitor, a murderer… a Servant of Morgoth?”

“Of course not!! You are a good elf, Maeglin, we raised you to be one and are proud of who you are” Maedhros nails scratched the covers of the book. “But former you… committed a great mistake in the past that cost a lot of people their lives. And they haven´t forgiven or forgotten.”

“So he was a bad person?”

“I´m… not sure myself. There is a lot of bias towards him, mainly because not a lot of people were friendly towards him in the first place… before he commited the mistake and…” he sighed, passing a hand through his locks. “You have to understand, not many knew the horrors of Angband. What they did to elves there… it was so awful. It breaks you, Maeglin, really breaks you. And not many were willing to understand.” He shuddered. “It´s something I wouldn´t wish upon my worst enemy.”

“You understand?”

“I was a prisoner of Angband enough time to do” he opened the book in a certain page. The title of the book flashed in the young nér´s eyes: The Fall of Gondolin. “Read this, it will explain what we are talking about. And be reassured, we don´t blame you for anything. You aren´t the nér the book says you are and I´m sure your former you wasn´t.”

“Will you leave me…”

“No, my dear” Findékano said, grabbing one of his hands. “We will be with you all the way.”  
Maeglin smiled, reassured, before reading the first paragraph. That Tarnin Austa…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you enjou the rescue? I was tempted to make Nelyo and Finno the heroes, but in the end I thought Tyelpe would be better. I always thought him and Maeglin would make a good couple, don´t you? Anyway, thanks for reading, we are almost at the end. Hope you are enjoying it!! Review!!


	30. Chapter 30

“I… wanted to tell you something. I… well… you and…” Tyelpe practised in front of his mirror how to ask Maeglin out for a date. He sighed, it wasn´t so hard last time he tried to ask someone out. Well, it was Sauron and he was actively trying to ensnarl him, but even so… “Come on, you have done it before. Sort of. You only have to say if he wanted to go out with you. Say it” he breathed in hard. “Please, come on a date with me!”

“Or you are trying to flirt with your mirror like a demented egomaniac or there is a boy on sight” Curufin said from the door, startling his son. He raised his hands in submission before the other could start rambling. “About time, might I say. I was beginning to think you will never gather the courage to ask a boy out again.”

“Can you please leave me alone” the younger smith said to his smirking father, red in the face and humiliated. Pretty much like a teenager caught by his parent. “I´m definitely going to get my own house one of this days.”

“You are welcomed to try, but remember the deal” his father said, shrugging. “No help to build yourself a mansion if you don´t get married first.”

Telperinquar gritted his teeth. He should have had his own house by now, but he wanted to reconnect with Curufin so much after his mother´s rejection that he didn´t bother to even try to build his own. Then, convinced that he was definitely done with love after his disastrous first time, agreed to that damn deal made by his grandfather without thinking and… well, let´s say that being in the same house as his father while planning to court someone was uncomfortable as Angband itself.

“I think you are cute. And a charmer” the older elf continued, smiling. “Why don´t you try to snarl him already? There is no way he will say no.”

The other thought hardly. After rescuing Maeglin from Turgon and the gondolindrim, more than a year ago, his little cousin had followed him around like a little duckling. He didn´t know if it was love or just plain admiration, but… that uncertainty was killing him. Besides, there was another issue that made him feel a little uncomfortable about his feelings towards Maeglin. It was that, even if they were both adults, he still felt as if the other was just a child. He had once sat the nér as an elfling on his knees, he remembered that very well, it was weird to now being attracted by the same baby from his memories.

“I´m going out” he informed Atarinkë, getting out of the house. Without even meaning it, he landed himself on a park bench, sighing because of his miserable love life. First an evil spirit (married evil spirit, the cheat) and then a brat he had known practically since he was born. What a poor selection.

“It´s strange, no?” someone suddenly said, sitting down next to Tyelpe. This jumped a bit and turned to face the other, finding none other than his uncle Maedhros. “Being attracted by someone you have known since he was a child.”

“Uncle, what…”

“I just wanted to speak to you” the redhead lowered his head a bit. “I have noticed for quite some time that you have feelings for my little boy.”

“Since when do you know?”

“I was wondering if there was something more to all of those pretty gifts you gave to him since his coming of age ceremony” Nelyo shrugged. “All the confirmation I needed was your face after you saved him from Gondolin to convince myself that I was right. And I was right.”

“So… are you here to give me the shovel talk?” the younger elf talked, not really wanting to have that particular talk. Specially because he knew how hard his uncle punched when he was angry. And he would be angry. His children were the angels of his life and… let´s just say that both Celebrian and Lópentari were lucky he was still in Mandos (and incapacitated) when they married the twins.

“I… somewhat trust you with him. I have known you your entire life, so I´m fairly sure you are going to be respectful of him” Maehdros signed. “No, I´m here to talk about why you haven´t asked him out yet.”

“Excuse me?” Tyelpe asked, red in the face. “He… hey, you don´t know what I´m going through…”

“Do you think you are the only one? Finno is my cousin, you know” that was not the problem, as they were not so closely related as to be considered incest in the eyes of the Valar. “And I was almost a fully grown adult when he was born.”

“What?” the smith was confussed. 

“It was strange for me too, if I have to tell you. The child I used to babysit suddenly was confessing his love to me and attempting to make me fall in love with him… quite clumsily, might I say” the copped haired Feanorian smiled, remembering the good old times. “Not the point, no? I just wanted to say, it took me quite some time to stop seeing him as the child I used to sit on my lap and start noticing the man trying to court me.”

“A man that resulted to be your true love, no?”

“I didn´t knew that then” Nelyo frowned, reminded of his younger oblivious self. “What I really remember is that I thought he had latched onto me because I was his closest friend and a little bit after that it was a weird phase that would pass” he sighed. “I´m glad it didn´t. I don´t know what I would do without him.”

“When did you noticed that he was the one?” asked Tyelpe. He hadn´t bothered to ask his father that question, as Curufin was divorced and quite badly, if he might ask. And he… once briefly in the past he thought he had found his one, but that ended up being a mistake. And Maedhros and Fingon… they were one of the longest and most successful love histories he knew. They surely must know.

“Well… that´s a little complicated” Maitimo blushed a bit. “We kissed once in a party when we got hopelessly drunk… and then there was a giant spider on one of our hunts that nearly got me… seeing him rushing to my rescue was quite a good tactic to conquer me. I think… it got baby Finno out of my mind when I saw him and got the adult Finno in the center of the attention.”

“So Thrangorodrim was not the first time he rescued you?”

“No, but… I rescued him from spiders more times than he me… I believe it was only once” they were speechless for a time. “Anyway, the thing is that we are in a similar situation. And Maeglin feels the same for you that you for him, I´m sure of that. It is very noticeable since you rescued him from Turgon. He is just waiting for you to give the first step. And you should do it? Or don´t you like the boy?”

“Yes, I do, but…”

“Would you stomach seeing him with someone else?”

“Of course not, but…”

“But what?”

“He is a little bit young for me, perhaps more than Finno was for you” Tyelpe sighed. “I… I really want him to reciprocate my feelings, but there is so much of an age difference…”

“Technically no, he was born in the First Age”

“We both know that doesn´t matter. Not when the only birth he remembers is on this Age and I was here when he was a baby” he sighed. “But… at the same time… I… I think I should try. I want to make him happy and if he accepts me… then I should try.”

“Great, that being said” Maedhros grabbed his nephew by the tunic and made his most terrifying face. Which, considering he was a four times kinslayer and mass murderer, was very scary. Enough to make the smith fear for his life. “If you ever hurt him or break his heart, I will kill you so slow that you will beg for mercy.”

“I´m your nephew…”

“Got a few more lately, want to try again?”

“You promised Finno not to kinslay anymore?”

“I think he would understand, if he is not there holding you while I disembowel your body” the redhead shrugged.   
“One more try”

“I won´t dare to break his heart ever, herunya”

“Well said” Maitimo released his nephew on the ground. “Buy him something pretty before you get home to ask him for a date. Or better, make him something. The Valar know you have always been better with your hands than anything else.”

“Thank you very much”

“And take a bath after leaving the forges. No elf is able to smell good after spending an entire afternoon in that inferno.”

“Yes” Tyelpe scrambled, going directly to the forge to make something pretty to impress Maeglin enough for his uncle not to kill him. He ran away under the attentive look of Nelyo, who just shook his head. Finno joined him soon, crossing his arms in front of his chest and smiling widely. 

“Did you really have to threaten your nephew like that?”

“A better question would have been if you had done something lighter than that if you have given him the shovel talk”

“Touchee” Fingon conceded. “I would have threatened to do something even worse if he hurts our little boy.”

“You are so protective” an arms encircled the younger elf, who smiled at his husband. “They are going to be okay, no?”

“Tyelpe is such an attentive young nér and he loves our baby so much… of course they are going to be fine” he sighed. “But, you know, even if we give them to someone we would put our hands on the fire for, it´s still so hard to give them away.”

“Too much” they both stared at each other with tears in their eyes. “I was wondering if you thought about what we talked about last week. I know we have been postponing it because of our fear that someone might hurt Maeglin, but… do you think it´s a good time to have another baby?”

“Now that he knows, I believe so” the copper haired elf sighed. “We better hurry to get one, I don´t want the little mole to think we are replacing him or something like that.”

“At least we won´t have empty nest syndrome” Findékano said. “Next time let´s not wait until the previous one is an adult to get the new one, okay?”

“Next time…”

Unknowingly to them, Celegorm was spying on the couple from a nearby alley. He had seen enough to understand the situation, that there was going to be another wedding in the family sooner than later… a wedding he himself would never have with his one. Wait, where was that coming from? He didn´t have a ONE, just a bunch of lovers. And he didn´t need one, he was fine with the hard cold sex. Forget what he might or might not feel for Oromë, he was fine without anything Nelyo, Kanno, Moryo, Curvo and now Telvo and Pityo had. He was the wild brother, the ever reckless hunter. He was fine like that.

“You seem to long for something” a voice spoke from behind him, sending shudders down his back. Oh, the Vala surely had a knack for appearing when he was not wanted, shattering whatever resolve he had. “Don´t be alarmed, I only came to give you an invitation.”

“An invitation? To where?”

“My private hunting lodge. I think you would enjoy it” the Ainur promised. “So, are you going to accept my invitation?”

“I will have to think about it”

He will have to think about it? Who was he kidding? Of course he was going to go!! There was no way he could turn down something like that. Without even telling someone what he was going to do, he saddled his horse and went off into the forest of Oromë. The domain of the Hunter was vast, but he would always found his way into the point he had signalled in his invitation. It was the one all the hunting parties used as a start point. And the place where his affair with the Lord of the Forest started. For him and thousands more.

“It´s a nice place to remember” he commented as he approached the Vala, who was completely alone. “Did you bring all of your dates here?”

“Here is not the place I wanted to show you” he extended an arm. “Shall we?”

Celegorm accepted and was gladfully taken to an unexpected place. It was Oromë´s hunting lodge. A building many have seen but none have ever entered. At least, no hunter. And more than a hunting lodge, it was a palace. With hundredths of unused rooms and other places filled to the brim with hunting trophees. But the best the place has to offer, at least in Tyelkormo´s opinion, was the master bedroom. With the biggest and fluffiest bed he had ever seen, covered by the most exotic of skins. Instantly he knew that no one but him had ever been there. Not even Vana. It was their special place, he understood while he laid down for his lover and let the feelings loose. Sex has never felt so good…

A few hours later, Oromë was watching the first lover he had ever brought to his sanctuary. He didn´t need to sleep, so he could admire his favourite doing the same relaxing activity in exchange. His soft breathing, his platinum hair cascading down his delicious back, the wildness he craved along with the sensation that despite how many used his body, he was only his… that´s why his blood boiled when he thought that someone dared to desecrate the link between them like Luthien had done. 

No, that was going too far. He had not taken actions before, despite the fury he felt, out of respect for the true hunters that lived in Doriath, but every year that passed and every attempt to kill his favourite by the kin of the princess that dared to disrespect a sacred bond put his patience to test. And finally it had run dry. 

“Don´t worry, my Tyelkro” he said as he mentally prepared his curse. From now on, no hunter of Doriath was welcomed in the Hunt, no prey of the woods would fall to them. Not until the King himself and Luthien´s line up until Elwing got on their knees and prayed for forgiveness, something he would make clear to the doriathrim. Let´s see how Thingol and Dior remained beloved after their beloved daughter and mother set the curse of one of the Valar on them.

\- Years later –

The multitude clapped as the happy couple kissed and sealed their union. Maedhros and Fingon were on first row along with their new elfling, Russafinwë, wipping their tears off as they saw their little Maeglin smiling around with Tyelpe. It was hard to say who was happier, the newlyweds, them or Curufin, now that his son was finally healed and happy. The congratulations rained for the parents and couple everywhere. Music and dancing was heard around as the couples twirled around, including them.

“I think I drank too much” confessed Finno after his tenth cup, practically falling inhis husband´s arms. “Let´s go to the beach a little bit, okay? So I can calm down a bit.”

“Just a second, let me ask Elrond to babysit his brother”

“Not Maeglin?” the mole was their usual babysitter, being the closest in age to the little one that was already an adult and by default responsible. 

“It´s the little mole´s special day, he can have all of it to himself” the redhead went to his peredhel son, giving him the sleeping baby. Then he returned to Fingon, who was definitely drunk, practically needing a chair to keep himself straight. “Okay, let´s go take some air somewhere.”

“Thank you, love” the raven said as he was practically dragged to a bench near the ocean. “You know, Moryo is going to be pissed we are in the sand in his costum made formal clothes. He spent days working on this fabric.”

“He is going to be even more pissed if Muino doesn´t find a partner by the end of the party. With Rátissë completely out of the game with a complete lack of sexual or romantic impulse, he is the last hope for his line.”

“He might end up as uninterested as her”

“Nay, he confessed that he enjoys girls, but has a problem finding one because he didn´t like conflictive ones. He wants an easy, submissive and sweet girl who would not cause him any problems” he snorted. “I think that´s Rátissë´s influence talking.”

“Probably” they laughed together, Findékano drunk and Maitimo a little bit tipsy. The younger then laid his head on the redhead´s shoulder. “Everything is going to be fine from now on, no? Formenos is opening more to the rest of the Elven Realms, Gondolin is humbled and quiet, same sex marriages and Children of Mandos are beginning to be accepted… it´s going to be alright.”

“Like on the Age of the Trees… well, not so much, but it´s going to be a peaceful existence like back then” Nelyo promised. “Forever”

He had just pronounced that last word when the sky over them began to crack with a silver light. Screams began to be heard as the attendants to the party rushed to get covered. The couple stayed there, frozen in fear, seeing how the dome that covered Valinor fell appart, revealing thousands of enoumous ships around it, along with tiny ships, flying contraptions that made a lot of sounds and… 

“Nelyo!! Finno!!” Fëanor suddenly appeared, sword in hand. He looked more than upset and even a bit scared, something he wouldn’t admit. “Go to your house now and take cover!! Quickly!!”

The couple obeyed, as frightened as him. What could this possibly mean? How could the Valar allow something like that? Who was inside those contraptions? Was it friend or foe? Was it dangerous? And they were not the only ones seeing it or asking similar questions. Back in Tol Eresseä, Laurefindil and Erestor were staring at it in fright, trying to stop Sarmener from getting out of the house. Egalmoth and Duilin were pressed against each other, staring at the sky, shielding their daughter Wirë between them. In the high balconies of a barely recovering from a long exile Gondolin, Turgon and Idril watched the sky with the same fear as the other elves. Thingol and Dior started to scream orders around to their courts, scared by the contraptions that floated around them. Olwë had a similar reaction, only stopping his ordering long enough for a quick prayer to Eru for help. Ingwë and his retinue went straight to the temple to pray for help or divine intervention. And Arafinwë…

“Do you think my brothers are going to help me if this turns into a conflict, my dear?” he asked Earwën, who he had trusted more in lately, since Indis didn’t want to talk to him for banishing her favourite grandson. “Nolofinwë doesn´t talk to me since the Turgon issue and I have never been able to completely trust in Fëanáro…”

“Right now trust issues and succession disputes must be set aside” the queen answered her husband. “They should know that right now the last thing we need is disunion the higher echelons. If not… then Eru helps us.”

“He didn´t help us last time” he sighed. “What do you thing, wife? Will this become something more?”

“If you want my sincere opinion, you will have it. And it is that war is on the horizon” the silver haired woman lowered her head. “I already prayed for being wrong.”

“Me too” Finarfin got up. “Right now I must get on the Throne and give orders. Call Findárato, please. The people needed to see the Crown Prince by the King´s side. Iron Hells, they need to see all of the Royal Family there, bringing support to us. Bringing hope.”

“Then write the summoning letters and call your brothers here. They might be older, but you are the King” she gave him her hand. “Send for them and remind them what they lacked in the last war that led to their defeat.”

“I will do that, hope they answer…”

\- In a Tower, in the middle of nowhere –

Duvainor Hloimadil Melkorion, otherwise known as Vilangon, was licking his lips in pleasure. Oh, the sweet taste of fear. Only the one of hate complimenting it could make it tastier… and there it was!! Fear and taste coming out of the edain. His creature was killed some time ago, but it did it´s job rather brilliantly. It prepared the way for this moment, making human frightened of the supernatural, so when the elves reappeared in front of the edain, they would be received with fear and suspicion. Great!! And he could also get revenge on the Children of Draugluin for abandoning his mother!! Brilliant!!

“Sorry, gentlemen” he said as he made a hole in the wall of his tower. With his power restored like that, he had nothing to fear from a few maiar. “It´s been fun, but I have to leave.”

A few moments later, the maiar were defeated and he stood proud over them. The flame in his eyes had a shine that the hadn´t had since he was locked away in the Valar´s containment Tower. Now, if only he could find that beacon, he would be ready to leave Valinor. Where could he go? Maybe somewhere the energy of the sacred trees of Yavanna was stronger. Now that he thought about it, his creature caused troubles near one of them…yes, he will behind with that. Besides America sounded more interested than good old England right now. It had more… interesting people, if he might call them one way.

“It will be fun”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we have reached the end of this fic!! With a surprise in the end, as the veil between the worlds of elves and humans shattered and Valinor becames visible again for the mortals. And reachable. What is our dear lord of poisons planning? By the way, the little menace´s attaressë Duvainor means beautiful darkness. I thought it would be a good name for a son of Melkor.   
> Anyway, I dropped some subtle hints in the ending of the chapter about the soon to come crossover. Do you think you can guess the other series? Answer and I will give you a special thanks in the first chapter of the next fic.   
> Hope you enjoy the fic. It´s going to get somewhat less homely in the next one. Review!!!

**Author's Note:**

> I know, maybe that is not very in character for the Feanorians or Aredhel, but it´s how the history developed. Personally I like Aredhel, she is a free spirited woman, but I found myself wondering always if she really took a good care of her son, wild as she was. And if, when Lómion was born, she was ready to be a mother or even ever wanted to become one. Many women doesn´t, why not her? Besides, I have read fanfics where Aredhel rejected her son once rehoused and wanted to try one of those. The idea of Fingon and Maedhros adopting baby Maeglin came down later, but I went on with that. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. Until next!!


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